Willing to Risk It All
by struck by flash lightning
Summary: "I know you." He scoffs bitterly, "You knew a different me." "You're still you." / In which the past comes back to haunt you with your darkest secrets and leaves you with a decision. To look past it, ignore it or open up your heart and change your future.
1. Operation Vanguard

~Author's Note~

Hey guys, here is our new story as promised! This is a prologue and little short because of that, but, trust me—later chapters will be longer. Please let us know what you thought with some reviews, and leave a follow or favorite if you liked! :)

 **Rated High Teen for** suggestive themes, romance pieces, heavy angst, slight violence, language and sensitive topics.

 **Notes:** dark kick, au, jerryxtaylor, some OC's.

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 **Willing to Risk It All**

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Prologue—Operation Vanguard  
1511 Hours (3:11 pm, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

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There's a saying that goes something along the lines of, "Failure is not an option."

I've heard it all my life and though it's exaggerated and cliché; I've never known anything less.

You see, when you come from a family background of army men; there's not a single moment when it's peaceful, calm and loving. Its tough love, determination and pride. My father was king of making my life, your life—hell, anyone's life— _miserable_.

He operated on two levels.

One, to make me into the man that would make our family proud. And two. To defeat the enemy at any cost. Being weak was not an option and you quickly learned what you were made of.

Ever since I could remember; I would wake up at the crack of dawn, being punctual was key to being 'army strong' (and damn if dad didn't drill that into my head), and completed all my chores; everything being pristine and to perfection. I would then take off to school, always being in the highest of classes, needing to outrank my fellow classmates in every shape and form.

So, as you could imagine, making friends was not an easy thing for me.

As the days carried on and I got older, I realized two things; that I wanted more to life than what I had and that I wanted to be the best I could be—no matter the cost. By the time I was a teenager, I was top dog, ruler of my high school and the one everyone wanted to be. It was also helpful that I was tall, lean and good looking. I was a _god_ in people's eyes and everything I was taught was paying off.

But then, then the attention became too much and from the wrong people.

It was like my mind and body were on overdrive, almost reaching the breaking point.

Until one day, everything changed. She came into my life and completely transformed it. We had similarities. The same outlook on the popularity scale and the way we viewed education, her being right on my tail in the rankings. But, it was her heart that made all the difference.

She actually had one.

There was a distinctiveness to her that intrigued my mind. But, I wouldn't give in.

I couldn't.

But you see, that's the funny thing. Feelings, they always come when you least expect it. And for me, I wouldn't get lured in by her trap. I was an army guy who was going places and all this, was just a moment of dare I say, weakness. I couldn't feel anything for this girl and like my mother always said, "Sometimes it's better to be alone. No one can hurt you."

But I knew this girl, if I didn't keep my distance she would get through me, break down the walls I had oh-so-carefully-built-up. She was so alluring though, something to be reckoned with and that— _that_ was the thing that pulled me in.

Soon, I was in too deep to find my way back out.

Then, everything went to hell before either of us knew what was happening and . . . now, the past has come back to haunt us.

And I don't know if either of us will still be sane by the end.


	2. Operation Phantom

**Hello and happy Friday!**

 **First off, we would like to thank eveyone who reviewed, favorited and followed this story. It means so much to us and we're really excited to share this with you all!**

 **And secondly, updates may be about monthly, give or take our schedules. So, just keep your eyes open!**

 **Again, thank you so much and enjoy!**

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Chapter One—Operation Phantom  
0216 Hours (2:16 am, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

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It was a relatively simple mission.

Scope out the area from the vantage point, take out the guards patrolling, covertly move in towards the girl's location, and get the okay after making sure it was her ID—then throw a gag in her mouth and a blindfold over her features.

That's all he would have to do and then his father promised that he would take over from there and give his son an actual mission. Not another 'babysitting' one as the leader's son liked to call it.

Just a concluding unpretentious mission.

Get the girl, hand off her to his father and then get right back out to the field.

Everything was going smoothly so far, he was moving in on the final guard patrol from the dense bushes around the mansion. His best friend of four years, twenty five year old Jerome "Jerry" Martinez—codename Watchtower—was chatting away on his ear com; currently ranting about the lack of triple deluxe meat sandwiches located at their home base.

"Dude, this is just unbelievable. Just because your pa is the leader, there are at least sixteen stacks of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches waiting for you in the mission room. But not one single meat lover's sub waiting for me. I've been here seven years and all they leave me is the leftovers of mushy mac and cheese from the rookies. Hey Jack, think you can talk to your pa after you get back from your assignment about leaving some edible food in the mission room?"

The boy in question rolled his eyes as the two guards in front of him talked nonsense to each other; something about the guard on the right about to have a baby in a month with his wife being pregnant. "Yeah I'll get right on top of that once I get back Watchtower, as long as I don't get caught because of your stupid ass using my real name across the com channel."

He could feel the flinch of his buddy through the com, "Right. Sorry."

Twenty three year old Jackson "Jack" Brewer—codename Vengeance—sighed quietly, listening carefully for the two guards to make their final check in with the guard tower for the late night.

"V?"

Jerry's deflated voice suddenly echoed in Jack's ear and he felt a twinge of guilt enter his gut, "Yeah Watchtower?"

"In all honestly bro, how are you doing since—"

"Don't finish that sentence."

"—her death?"

The com went deadly silent and Jerry actually stopped picking at his nails to type some things into the computer mainframe in front of him to make sure nothing had happened to his friend and breathed a sigh of relief when he was able to bring up the live feed from the camera mended into Jack's black mask.

Jerry watched as Jack started to move out of the bushes, approaching the two guards from behind.

"So when is she due?" The guard on the left asked, crossing his arms as his half glazed over eyes from no sleep scanned the road ahead of him.

The guard on the right stretched, the obscure sub machine gun attached to his hip clattering with his movements. "December, the twenty-fifth, believe it or not." Jerry could hear the smile in the man's words and got lost for a moment; wishing he could share that with someone.

That was lost a second later when he remembered where he was, what his job was and it was only the sight of Jack grabbing the two by their necks and bringing their heads down together; the two barely getting out a soft groan before Jack started to choke them out on the ground that was like a slap to the face for Jerry as he was brought back to the present.

It was the one thing Jerry hated about his friend, how Jack could unexpectedly turn off his emotions to get the job done and have no regard for human life. He also knew how frightened Jack was of himself, the man was literally _terrified_ of himself because he didn't have any trust left to go off of.

Jerry waited for Jack to let go of their necks as they moved towards unconsciousness but felt a churning in his gut when the man didn't make any movements of stopping.

"Vengeance stop. I repeat Vengeance, stop now." Jack was surprised at the demanding tone in Jerry's voice and it stunned him so much that he let go of the unaware men from shock. He heard a puff of air escape Jerry through the com and stared dumbly at the two motionless bodies in front of him for a minute, until Jerry's calm voice stumped him out of his stupor.

"Hide the bodies V, you have to get moving."

Jack picked any guns off the two men and tossed them across the driveway into the shrubs and then dragged both the bodies into the brush he used to be hiding in; making sure no limbs were sticking out. Next he grabbed his phone from his pocket, swiping it open and checking the time. "When do the guards switch shifts again Watchtower?"

He could hear the clack, clack of Jerry's fingers racing over the keys. "3:30 for the guard tower, three o'clock for any guards patrolling."

Jack cursed quietly to himself as the neon time of 2:43 taunted him from his phone. Clearing out the zone was taking too long, he needed to get into the house and to the girl. "Send me the fastest route to get inside the house. Add in avoidance of guard stands and entrance through the parent's room."

Not even a second later a message popped up on his phone and Jack started to memorize the route.

"Sent." Jerry paused and spoke again once he saw Jack slip his phone back in his pocket, "Listen, I'm sorry I brought her up man, but it's only been a few months. No one would be okay by now, not even you dude."

Jack exhaled, cracking his knuckles, "I know man, I'm sorry for losing control for second there."

"Nah, it's all good."

A smudge of a smile appeared on Jack's lips, "Let's get through this mission in one piece okay?"

Jerry didn't answer, Jack assumed it was because he had finally dug into the chicken fingers that had been sitting on his desk since he had stopped in to hook up their coms from earlier, and so Jack laughed to himself before heading stealthily towards the mansion looming ahead of him.

Jack and Jerry worked with a covert part of the U.S military—codename Midnight Ops—that was being run by Jack's father. The operations they completed was the dirty work that the Army and S.E.A.L Corps didn't want to do, so technically they ignored the current laws fully.

Jack was loped in from the start, his father had started to teach him fighting moves when he was five. His mother didn't like any of it and she always tried to shield Jack from the corrupt ways of his father. He was enlisted in the Army the day he turned eighteen and with his father's help as one of the head generals there he was swiftly promoted through the ranks.

Now he was in charge of the undercover operations sector.

Jack met Jerry when he was nineteen, the two thrown in military training together—as well as being in the same squad as each other. Jerry had joined the military with little to no choice, as his many brothers and grandparents had done the same for generations (Jerry wouldn't admit it but because his last name was so well known the drill sergeants and any other older men in charge on the base would pick on him and literally try to push him to death when they could get him alone—Jack saved Jerry from death a few times . . . and not so much some other times).

The men promptly founded a best friend, brotherly type of relationship and always worked with each other in the field for as long as each could remember. With a few words from Jack to his father, Jerry was switched from training to become a Navy S.E.A.L to becoming a master in stealth missions along with Jack.

Their paths wavered early on in their fourth year of being friends because of Jerry's newfound infatuation with computers and hacking but they reunited fast enough as Jerry now became Jack's 'man behind the computer' for whenever Jack was sent out someplace.

The computer room was basically a wasteland because of Jerry now, as he spent all of his time clicking away instead of cleaning up the trash and pizza boxes coating the floor.

"I'm in, how close am I to the girl's room?" Jack's voice was near inaudible as Jerry snapped his head up to look at the screen and wiped the chicken grease off his fingers with a napkin from the floor. He brought up a small square in the corner that showed the blueprints of the house and sighed in relief when he saw how close Jack was.

The mission would be over soon with Jack home safe.

"Next left and then it's the final door at the end of the hallway dude. Go finish this."

Jack stayed silent as he obeyed Jerry's directions, but when he turned a guard stared him back in the face. Jerry took a sharp inhale when the start of a shout leaked from the guard's throat. "What in the h—"

Jack charged the guard and brought him to the floor, taking out a wire from his pocket. "Watchtower," His voice was a plea as he kept one hand over the guard's mouth, leaving only muffled gaps to escape.

Jerry pushed the chicken away from him as his stomach doubled over at the unavoidable. "There's n-no way to avoid it?"

"He saw my mask, saw my outfit. He knows who we work for." Even if Jack could shut off his emotions and lose control of his rage a lot, killing was something he hated doing. Jerry and he made a pact about a year before how they would only kill if no other options were presented. Both lived true to that so far.

"Do it."

Jerry turned his head towards the ground as Jack pressed the wire to the man's throat; and a few seconds later the man fell limp in Jack's arms. Jerry had been surrounded by blood his whole life. He hated it. Hated looking at it. "All clear Jer."

Jack knew his friend like the back of his hand and Jerry was thankful for the heads up and the first name usage as that was a great way to get Jerry composed in a short amount of time in a bad situation.

"Thanks. Alright the girl should be in that room. Be mindful of the time Vengeance, it's three minutes until three. Get in, send me the ID and then get out. We can worry about if the ID doesn't match later."

"Entering the room now."

The girl they were hunting was one by the name of Kimberly "Kim" Crawford—codename Venus—the twenty one year old daughter of two wealthy millionaires. The government wanted to use her as ransom for information; they had the right to believe that her father was selling weapons to terrorists.

The faster the father told them the information, the faster his daughter would be returned.

The government had given Midnight Ops strict orders to not harm the girl, yet they were allowed to grill her for information; but Jack had a gut feeling his father would ignore that. It had been a while since they had gotten any female prisoners as sick as that sounded.

But Jack knew, hell even Jerry who was obvious all of the time knew, that when hard working men were away from the missus too long their minds got a little jacked up while right and wrong blurred together.

Jack entered the room, taking a look around. The bed was empty.

"Watchtower she isn't here, over."

Jerry's brows scrunched in confusion. "Dude there's a heat signature in the room. On the bed."

Jack didn't have enough time to respond as a knife slipped around his neck from behind, a woman's hand grabbing his arm and twisting it behind his back. "Folded up heated blankets work like a charm for when someone tries to track you, my mom taught me that during my teenage years." She whispered, Jack keeping his face unbiased.

Showing emotion of any kind was bad, it would just get him buried someplace.

"I'll keep that in mind for when I go to kick her ass later,"

The girl shoved her elbow into the spine of his back and he grunted from the sudden discomfort. "Who are you and what do you want?" He knew the voice had to be Kim's and he ignored the fresh smell of peppermint on her breath; like as if she was expecting this moment in time.

"I can't tell you."

Without waiting any longer Jack shoved the girl with his open arm and as she doubled over from the pain he took his phone from his pocket and snapped a quick picture; restraining the girl in the meantime. "Please tell me this bitch is the right girl Watchtower because if not I wouldn't mind slicing her throat." Jack growled and Jerry had to give a noiseless round of applause to the girl who was able to piss Jack off so much.

Jerry got the picture and grinned, "Yo man, she's hot! See those cheekbones? Holy shit, can you ask her if she would marry me?"

Jack was straddling the girl on the ground, as she continued to fight to get out of his hold. "Watchtower," Jack snarled, Jerry going quiet on the other end.

"Yeah she's the one. Bring her in. Oh and tell her I love her!"

Jack didn't waste time in slamming the girl's head to the carpeted ground until darkness surrounded her.

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1429 Hours (2:29 pm, EST)  
 _Crawford, Kim_

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She groaned when the feeling of something smacking into her brain rapidly in a throb awoke her, having trouble getting her eyes to open. Her mind was fuzzy, the night before a muddled puddle in her memory.

Did her stepdad get more violent than usual?

"Get the hell up blondie or else this is going to be harder than it needs to be."

Her eyes shot open at the unknown voice in the room as the events of the night before come rushing back to her.

She definitely wasn't at home.

Kim blinked a few times, slowly sitting up and leaning back against what felt like an icy stone wall behind her. She took a quick glance of what was around her, stomach dropping to her knees once she realized she was in some sort of a mock dungeon or prison cell type of set up.

Her cell was the size of a small apartment bedroom with no windows and three walls made up of a thick, cement type of rock that reflected the color of grey mush. The fourth wall that sat in front of her sitting position against the back wall, wasn't even a wall as rusted metal bars caged her in. A cot made of what looked like a thin sheet of ripped cotton and a small yellow crusted pillow mocked her from the right, a disgusting looking toilet and moldy sink sitting on the left side of her.

A single roll of toilet paper and a half filled water bottle sat in front of her, finishing off the list of what was in the cell with her. Kim reached a hand up and pressed it against the back of her head where the annoying dull thumping was coming from and when she brought her hand back a thin coating of dark crimson coated her fingers and she rubbed it off on her low hanging sweatpants with a choked gag.

"Get over it blondie, it'll heal."

The smug voice came out of nowhere and she lifted her head to see where it came from; finally noticing the tall, dark haired handsome stranger that had bashed her head to the floor the night before. He was causally leaning against the wall outside of her cell, the blonde taking into notice that the room she was in stretched about five feet outwards and then a single closed door resting about a foot away from the man on the same wall.

Talk about cramped, Kim thought with a shudder as she took a better look at the man supposedly okay with mocking her endlessly.

His brown hair was messily styled, different strains sticking up here and there. Alcohol colored auburn eyes stared back into her own with a brash undertone and his lips were tugged into a cocky smirk. His muscular posture was sagged because of how he was orientated, with his arms crossed and one foot balancing on the wall behind him, and Kim didn't like how pivotal he was dressed or how the aura around him was filled with an arrogant tone.

A simple black sleeveless muscle tee was thrown unsympathetically over his torso, along with some black pants that had a lot of side pockets and a shiny chain dropping from one side and then looping back up (Kim figured they were some type of heavy duty military pants which didn't make sense because the last time she checked the military was against any forms of kidnapping) and then some steel-toe boots to finish off his look.

The thing that got her attention was the small stitched in logo that was being portrayed valiantly on the upper right side of his shirt—it looked like it was a crescent moon with two stars beside it and a bone underneath it.

Maybe he wasn't army, she thought to herself after a minute.

She didn't know of any branches of the military that had that kind of symbol; maybe it was a covert ops sector? There was a silver ring on his left hand that looked beaten and scratched up along with a part of a tattoo Kim couldn't see on the inside of his left wrist (Kim was proud of how well she avoided looking at the muscles of his arms, the gallant veins interlacing all the way from his tanned shoulders down to his coarse fingers).

"Why are you looking at me like that blondie? Got a staring issue bitch?" Kim's eyes snapped up to his face with a trace of a growl rising from her throat and a hateful glare directed his way.

"Got an attitude issue asshole?" She grinded out through clenched teeth, the man's face losing its smirk.

He moved off the wall and to the crusted bars, staring the woman down.

There was a cut near her forehead, crusted over with dried blood, and a bruise bloomed over her left eye. A small part of him wondered where she got those two things from, because he knew for a fact he only gave her the nasty gash on the back of her head (she would be fine in two days, he had been through worse). Her sunlight colored irises were ablaze with an intolerable flame, plump pink lips tight in the start of a snarl.

He felt bad for the girl because she didn't know how the two men that had changed her into her new clothes had looked at her and talked about her—how he had stepped in after becoming worried that they would actually act on the repulsive things they were saying.

Jack knew the girl was a fighter but he also knew that if she didn't fix her snarky comments then things would get out of hand very fast and he wasn't too sure that he would be able to stop it.

A tattered light blue tank top broadcasted her fit stomach as it was a size too small for her, grey sweatpants almost falling off her body from being a size too big. Yeah, Jack thought, you could tell two very ravenous men had dressed her to their whim.

"I'm in charge here. Learn that fast blondie because I'm the only one who will have the power to protect you."

She didn't waste time in responding, "Protect me from what? Your stupid ass self?"

Jack hit the bars suddenly, causing Kim to jump. He turned away and looked at the blank wall behind him for a moment, before flipping around and the look in his eyes actually scared Kim a little more than she would have liked to admit. "From the same assholes who want to fucking tear you apart. So sit there and _shut_ up or else I'm letting them in here to fucking eat you alive."

Kim gulped soundlessly, nodding her head once.

Jack went back to his spot leaning against the wall. He didn't look at her when he spoke again, "Someone should be here soon to debrief you. Keep your tongue in check until then so he doesn't cut it out when he gets here yeah?"

"Why am I here?" She whispered, curling up so that her head was resting on her knees. Jack stared at her for a curious moment, the silence ticking away slowly in her ears.

"Your father is being accused of some shit. Government wants answers." She exhaled shakily and Jack was shocked at how her mood had dimmed so fast. Did he actually scare her or was she used to this type of treatment from someone else?

"Of course, he's so stupid sometimes." Her defeated voice shocks him out of his stupor and he found himself nodding.

"If it makes you feel any better blondie, government gave us strict orders on not hurting you."

Kim shook her head, "Considering you are apparently a 'dirty work yet unknown' part of the military I wouldn't doubt that you and your friends will maybe forget that there are lines that can't be crossed." Jack sighed and Kim knew she had a point. Her mom never hid the world from her and the woman knew just how evil some people were.

"Listen blondie," he spoke quietly, "I'm not—"

Before he could finish the door next to him opened, causing Kim to flinch from the sudden noise.

Three men walked in, Jack standing up straight and placing his hands firmly at his sides. Kim quickly took in each one, not liking the large muscle pattern each seemed to sport. The first one greeted Jack with a nod before moving to stand next to him; Latino, curly black strains of hair, brown seemingly glowing eyes, brawny arms (enough to rival Jack's) and his height was only an inch shorter than Jack as the man's head was even with Jack's forehead.

A light green army pull over jacket was causally thrown over his body, the zipper undone and sleeves rolled up to just above his elbows on each arm along with some black colored jeans. He didn't have any shirt on under his jacket, his pale abs being flaunted instead from each small movement, and dog tags hanging from around his neck—bettering his look.

"Have I missed anything new Watchtower?" Kim heard Jack ask the man who shook his head silently.

The second man had on a full general's military outfit, along with a black cap that covered his bald head (from what Kim could tell anyway) and she didn't like how he and the third man advanced so fast towards her cell.

The third man looked to be just there for security, as he lingered towards the back of the second man with his hand gasping onto the German pistol taped to the side of his waist. The second man unnerved her as he met her glare head on, a creepy smile latching onto his lips.

"Hello sweetheart, are you happy with your room arrangement?"

Kim scowled, "Yeah it's better than the one I have at home asshole."

Jerry felt Jack flinch beside him and he knew he had good reason to. Kim was treading on some mighty thin ice. "She'll be okay V," Jerry muttered into Jack's ear, the latter shaking his head.

"She doesn't know what she's getting into Jer. She has no fucking idea how dangerous it is here."

As if to follow Jack's words, the man in front of Kim slapped her without any remorse; his eyes growing cold. "I could have you locked in a two by two metal box and no one would give two shits about the difference so I suggest," he grabbed her chin, jerking her head forwards so she was facing him, "you _fix_ your tone."

Kim stared the man down and Jack got a tight feeling in his stomach.

He should be intervening, he should be saying something to break the harsh glare shared between the two. But his feet made no motion to move. He wasn't supposed to care about her. She was their captive and she was simply there so that they could get information on her father's whereabouts and illegal deals.

"Why don't you fuck _off_ and let go of me."

She answered threateningly and before anyone could react a wad of spit left her mouth and landed directly in the man's face—the smirk he had worn snapped off his lips and was instead replaced by a furious snarl.

Kim clawed at his hand and as soon as he let go from the unexpected pain she scurried backwards to the far corner of her cell, pressing her back as far into the wall as it would go. The man stayed frozen for a moment until he wiped the spit off his mouth and slowly turned to face the man standing behind him, the one with the German pistol.

He seemed to be struck by a thought though as he turned back around to face Kim, a sickening grin overlapping his thick cheekbones.

"I almost forgot to introduce everyone sweetheart. My name is General Brewer and you will only refer to me as Commander, which is my base codename." He pointed a grubby finger to the man who had moved up to stand next to Commander—his grimy smile showed four yellowed teeth from Kim's hasty count. "This is your second guard who will keep an eye on you whenever your normal guard is unable to. Say hello to Barricade."

Kim didn't make a sound as Commander continued, pointing to Jack and Jerry.

"Your official guard is Vengeance while your 'if needed' third guard is Watchtower over here." Commander clapped his hands together, looking at the four faces staring back at him giddily. "Barricade, I think sweetheart over here is in need of a punishment. Would you be so kind . . . ?"

Barricade grinned, "Delighted to, sir."

He advanced towards Kim and Jack's eyes widened as he pushed himself off the wall to jump in front of Kim and block Barricade from reaching her. "What in the hell are you doing?" He questioned no one in particular, Barricade grabbing his shoulder and attempting to push him out of the way. Commander looked at his son, eyes narrowing.

"Miss Crawford is in need of learning a lesson on how to respect adults. Allow him through Vengeance or else I will result to using force." Jerry moved over next to Jack, grabbing his elbow.

"Come on dude, let the man do his job. Come on." Jerry was able to pull Jack away from Barricade before a scene was caused but Jack didn't give up yet.

"We aren't allowed to _hurt_ her Commander," He shouted rather loudly, Jerry releasing Jack's elbow for fear of his own safety.

"Outside. Now."

Commander turned to leave and Jerry did as well but before Jack did as well he was able to send a punch to the back of Barricade's head, sending the man flying to the floor. The next thing Kim knew was that there was a lot of shouting and then silence as Jerry, Jack and Commander left to the hallway and Barricade sent her a twisted smile.

Meanwhile, Jerry was struggling with holding Jack's arms down as he tugged him out to the hallway, Jack shouting out in anger as he tore from Jerry's grasp and walked over to where his father was blocking the door that led to Kim's cell. "Let me through or I'll—"

"You'll what, kid? Gonna pound on your old man?" He chuckled, a bitter laugh that echoed through the abandoned hallway, and crossing his arms (whereas Jerry was trying to decide if it would be better to leave and live a few more years or stay and help his friend . . . _and_ most likely die for doing so).

"Get out of my way," Jack whispered, voice mimicking the sound of an animal growling, "or else."

"You know," Commander mused, "I don't think your mother would _appreciate_ this kind of behavior." Jerry's sunk to his knees as soon as the words left Commander's mouth, because he knew the older man was trying to push Jack to do _something_ —

"Don't talk about my mother. You don't have the _fucking right_ to do such a thing."

Commander's lips slip into a leer as he pushes himself off the door, slowly moving towards his son. "Damnit kid, even after all these years, you still think you have the right to even _breathe_." Jerry's too late in catching Jack's shoulder as the latter launches a punch towards his father, Commander dodging easily as he steps out of the way so that Jack's fist hits the metal of the door with a harsh bang.

Not even seconds after that, Commander is twisting Jack's arm behind his back and shoving him into the wall. "I don't know what's gotten into you son," he mutters menacingly, "but you need to understand that this is our mission. We need to break this girl and get the information or else this entire thing is a bust. And we can't afford that. You get into check or I'll personally make sure you are far away from here when I question her."

Commander throws his son with a swift push into the wall, opening up the door and ushering Barricade out before the two make their way down the hallway—Jerry not daring to move until the two are out of sight.

Jack doesn't move for a while.

* * *

When Jack walks back into the room a few hours later, Kim's huddled in one of the corners. Jack doesn't say anything as he leaves for a minute, returning with a small blanket that he tosses into the cell with no words.

She takes it and he tries to ignore the sight of crimson staining her clothes.

Kim desperately tries to ignore the fact she had discovered hours before—the fact that she knew this man. He wasn't always so heartless, so closed up—he used to be a kid. A tense, handsome, caring teenager who would've burned down the world to make sure she was happy.

She wondered if he remembered her, or if the blood marred her memory.


	3. Operation Romeo

~Author's Note~

Hey guys! Super sorry about the wait (that one was totally on me, and this near midnight update is on me as well) but the next chapter is finally here! Thank you all so much for the support and the crazy amount of reviews both chapters have gotten mean a ton as always.

I hope you guys enjoy and any feedback would be appreciated! :D

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Chapter Two—Operation Romeo  
0938 Hours (9:38 am, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

* * *

Seven years ago, it was like any normal day.

The hallways were packed with high school students, most of whom had no interest for school whatsoever and who would, right? Being forced to learn things for eight hours a day was not fun. And hey, about seventy-five percent of what you learn has no value in the real world. But of course, there were those select few who loved school or at least loved the aspect of learning new things and expanding one's mind. But, if you look closer and I mean, really look close—you'd see that they were a select few to where school was not only an outlet for them, but what they needed.

Jack Brewer was one of those select few.

He was sitting in an empty classroom, focused on the paper he was typing that was due at the end of the week.

His priorities were simple, start on the work as soon as possible to stay on top of everything else. He was by no means a nerd, but a guy with a lot of activities on his plate. From school to sports. To his part-time job to his training, there was never a moment of downtime. And most times, he didn't mind the constant schedule as its been this way for as long as he can remember.

He was no stranger to always being on the go.

But, as of lately, he's gotten a little help in taking a step back and actually living life. His help was something completely out of the dark but one of the best things in his life.

His help?

His girlfriend of eight months, Kim Crawford.

She, like Jack, had a lot on her plate and many times; they butted heads because they were not only competitive, but they thought alike and both were extremely smart. Their first meeting wasn't the best, no surprise there as they both wanted to be number one.

There were times when he beat her and he gloated and, there were times when she beat him and grinned with pride.

It was a constant battle between the two until one day in their US history class, they were partnered together on the biggest project of the year; the project on gender and equality.

Everyone literally froze when they heard the teacher read out those two names and they knew the partnership was going to crash and burn. And, in the beginning, it kind of did. Both were headstrong, stubborn and couldn't find a common ground as neither was giving in to the others ideas and suggestions. Until one day, the pair was sitting in class, arguing like usual when they suddenly realized they hadn't gotten anywhere and everyone else was making progress.

That afternoon, sitting in the back of the library, something changed. For the first twenty minutes, all they did was ignore each other and at times shared a glare or two before Jack finally broke. "Oh, for fuck's sake. Let's just come up with an idea so we can actually start on the stupid project."

"Okay, fine. Why don't we each find two females who make about the same amount as their male counterpart along with finding two males who fought to help women in this fight," Kim said randomly.

"You know, that idea could actually work," Jack nods approvingly.

"Good," Kim replies, getting up and making her way to a computer.

And so, for the next hour, the two meticulously work, doing all the research they could before the library closed. That day, they not only got a topic but half their project was already finished. So, over the next few weeks, the two perfected their projects and realized that one, their partner wasn't the worst person to be paired with and two, when push came to shove, they did make a good team.

Being two of the brightest students, the project was finished way before the due date and the duo went their separate ways. Jack went back to sports and training, while Kim too, took this time to 'get back into shape'. Things were how they always were and back to normal.

Well, until one day, a very angry Jack ran into Kim, literally at the park.

She was out for one of her normal runs and he had just got into an 'argument' with his father and needed to blow off some steam. Being blinded by pure rage, Jack turned a corner and ran right into Kim, taking them both to the ground with Jack landing right on top of Kim. "Sorry," Jack grumbled, getting up and extending a hand to his victim. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," the person replies back, taking the hand and getting up while dusting off their backside. "Alright, good. Sor—Crawford?" Jack questions with a shocked expression.

"Brewer?" Kim copies. "Damn, what's got your panties in a twist?"

"Nothing that concerns you," Jack hisses, taking a step back. "Sorry for knocking you down," and then sprints off.

Kim watches Jack leave and shake her head, not understanding that guy at all.

Over the next few days, Kim could tell Jack was still, for lack of a better word, upset and though they weren't necessarily friends; something about his attitude caught her attention. During history class while everyone was still working on their projects, Jack and Kim sat next to each other and worked on their other homework. Looking to her right, Kim saw Jack intently reading his book, his eyebrows scrunched together and jotting down a lot of notes.

She could see the focus he had and though she understood his demeanor, she still wanted to make sure he was alright. "Jack, are you okay?" She whispered.

Whipping his head to the left, Jack raised an eyebrow and mumbled, "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You still seem a little angry," Kim pushed.

"It's none of your business. Why do you care anyways?" Jack sneers.

"Well, excuse me for having a heart," Kim growls as the bell rings, signaling the end of class.

Quickly throwing everything in her bag, Kim storms off as Jack closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose, slightly regretting how he handled the conversation. The day carried on as usual and when the final bell rang, Jack went on a mission to find Kim, has conscience screaming at him to apologize.

After searching the stampede of students, blonde hair caught his attention as it was heading out the main doors. Pushing past annoyed teenagers and ready to catch up, he finally sees her making her way to the parking lot. "Kim, Kim. Wait up!" He shouts over multiple conversations going on outside.

Slowly turning around at the sound of her name, she sees the source, rolls her eyes and continues walking, not in the mood to deal with him right now. "Oh, come on", Jack groans under his breath as he clenches his jaw and runs after her again.

Right when Kim reaches her car door, Jack slides in front of her, stopping the action and earning a glare. "Move it Brewer," Kim says through gritted teeth.

"No, not until you hear me out," Jack starts off as he takes a deep breath. "Look. I'm sorry I was a jerk to you in history. You didn't do anything and didn't deserve it. And, if this counts for anything, thank you for asking. To be honest, I'm under a lot of stress right now from my dad and everything is just messed up."

"Wow, is Jackson Brewer actually apologizing to me? I can't believe it," Kim gasps, slightly teasing and lightening the mood.

"Ugh, you're unbelievable. I don't know why I even tried," Jack yells as he slides away from the car and turns around to leave.

"Jack, wait!" Kim immediately shouts, grabbing his wrist before he went too far. "I'm sorry for teasing you. I really do appreciate you apologizing, thank you. And, don't worry about it. Everyone's allowed to have bad days, we're only human after all. I totally understand your stress. Our parents push us to be the best, it's their job. But, if you ever need or want someone to talk to, you know where to find me."

Jack's jaw drops in shock but quickly closes as he stutters out, "Uh, th-thanks."

"You're welcome," Kim finishes, giving him a nod before waking back to her car.

Jack watches Kim drive off and then slowly makes his way back to his car as he didn't understand what was happening. Sure, he apologizes for certain things, like running into or bumping someone in passing. But, he's never once had to apologize for his attitude because generally, he knew how to keep his emotions in check.

Grumbling to himself over his stupidity, he speeds home and locks himself in his room in desperate need to refocus on more important things and to pull his shit together.

And, for the most part, things were good. His homework kept his mind busy, dinner kept his body full and energized and the rock music coming out of his stereo speakers put him at ease.

But, around midnight, when his homework was finally finished, silence and darkness filled his room and his mind went back to this afternoon with Kim. Sure, they were civil now, but today's conversation was different. It was real, genuine and raw. And _that_ , that scared him. Because he knew from past conversations with his father, that opening yourself up, especially to someone of the opposite sex, leads to weakness.

And that, was one thing he didn't want. Not now, nor ever.

That night, Jack tossed and turned, hardly getting any sleep. This whole thing was messing with his mind and that was not acceptable in his book.

So, over the next few days, he did the only thing he could think of, he distanced himself and tried to ignore the source.

But, it didn't last long. Her laughter always caught his attention, them somehow conversing became more and more frequent as they always found themselves talking in class or randomly as they walked down the halls and before they even knew what was happening, they were close, almost as close as friends.

And that was how their friendship was born. The two opened up to each other, sharing stories about themselves, their pasts and their families and recognized that they had a lot more in common than they even realized.

Quickly, their friendship turned into something more and their hanging out turned more into dates. Moments between them were sweeter and the gestures more romantic but you know, with every good, a bad soon follows.

It was like any normal day, the school hallways were packed but as soon as Jack stepped through the door, a dark cloud was right behind him. Stomping his way through the hallway to his locker. Everyone who knew even an ounce of Jack's persona, knew today was going to be ugly.

Grabbing his books out of his locker, he quickly slams it shut, the sound echoing throughout the building and makes his way to his first class.

Being in a sour mood, his attention was wavering in and out and the constant buzzing in his pocket was starting to really annoy him. His patience was running paper thin. By the time he got to history, he wanted to turn back around and leave the room when he saw the look on Kim's face. Having a battle with himself, debating on what to do, his better judgment won as he trudged to his seat and got ready for the lesson.

Kim saw the look on Jack's face when he entered the building earlier this morning and wasn't surprised to see that it hadn't changed. Knowing not to push the matter, Kim went the whole class period without uttering a signal word to Jack. And, though he face didn't show it, he was thankful.

For the rest of the day, mostly every student stayed clear of Jack and only hoped that tomorrow was a better day.

But life—it's never fair and Jack was pretty much the same the next day and the day after that.

Being fed up by his ass of an attitude, on Friday afternoon, after almost everyone left, Kim spots Jack making his way to his car and jumps into action. "Brewer, wait up," she yells, running to catch up, his height definitely benefiting him.

"Not now Kim," Jack growls, increasing his pace, almost making a run for it.

Kim lets out a frustrated huff before biting her lip and turning her jog into a run, wanting to talk to him. But, luck was on Jack's side as he got into his car just as Kim approached the driver's side. Without even casting a glimpse in her direction, he backs up and speeds out of the parking lot, thanking his lucky stars.

The weekend was uneventful and the weather somehow seemed to match Jack's mood as the skies were dark and his attitude wasn't any better.

Everyone dreads Monday's, right? I mean, who wouldn't? And Jack, was no exception as he was cursing under his breath upon entering the school building. He didn't want to be here, at all. And, he certainly didn't want to deal with a particular blonde who he knew for a fact would be on his tail for what happened on Friday.

The morning was okay, he couldn't really complain.

He got through his first couple of classes without any trouble but, as soon as he entered his history class, he instantly felt a bad aura. Taking a quick glance around the room, his eyes landed on Kim who had a blank expression on her face and he braced himself for the storm that was about to come.

But luckily and surprisingly for him, Kim kept her composure and just ignored Jack altogether.

By the end of the day, Jack couldn't wait to get out of there and once he reached his car, he was greeted by a very unhappy Kim. "Kim, what are you doing here?" he questions with a raised eyebrow.

"You know why I'm here. And, I'm not leaving until I get answers," she fires back with a certain fire in her eyes.

"Well then, you'll be here a while because I'm not telling you shit," Jack sneers.

"Why do you have to be like that?" Kim snaps angrily.

"Be like what?" Jack barks back.

"An egotistical, rude, jackass. Trust me,the list goes on and on. You act like you don't have a care in the world. Pushing everyone away because you're afraid to show any emotion. Afraid to show people who you really are," Kim explains in a calmer tone.

"You don't know anything about me," Jack hisses. "You're just a dumb blonde, wanting to fix everyone else's problems so she can be this perfect girl."

Kim's eyes widen in shock and hurt but doesn't let Jack get to her as she takes a deep breath and finishes, "I may not know a lot about you, but I do know that you're dedicated to your work and closest friends. You thrive on being the best. Not only for the glory but, to feel like you're worthy of the accomplishment. You work tirelessly to live up to your parents expectations and most importantly, you built this wall around you because you don't want to get hurt. I may be blonde, but I'm nowhere near dumb. Screw you Brewer. I'm done."

Jack watches Kim's retreating form and can't help but feel like the biggest douche on the planet. He's never one to be disrespectful but there's just something about Kim and the way she pushes his buttons that makes him go absolutely insane. And then, there's the fact that there's a feeling in his heart and gut that tells him it has nothing to do with that.

It has to deal with that he feels something, something he doesn't want to feel.

Because feelings, they never lie.

He's not a surprise that he's greeted by another sleepless night, tossing and turning, thinking about how he's screwed things up with Kim because quite simply, he's just an idiot. And tomorrow, when he sees her, he's putting everything on the line because though he doesn't believe in now, this girl is going to change his life in ways that he can't even imagine.

The whole next day, Kim did an amazing job staying clear of Jack, but when history came around, she put on her big girl pants and handled it like a pro.

By the end of the day, Kim made a quick escape from the building only to be greeted by rain outside. Cursing to the skies for not having an umbrella today, she starts running to her car only to hear her name being called by the one person she hates. She increases her pace, wanting to get as far away as possible from the source but as soon as she reaches for her car door, a hand grabs her hand and turns her around to face them. "Fuck off Brewer. I'm not in the mood," Kim states firmly, snatching her hand out of his.

"I know Kim. But please, hear me out," Jack asks, almost sounding desperate.

"No," Kim shouts, shaking her head vigorously, the rain coming down harder now. "No, you don't get to do this. You don't get to insult me, be a total jerk and then expect me to have a conversation with you. You're not this hail-oh-mighty-king and I'm not this weak servant you can just boss around. I know you've got a lot going on but you can't always treat people like crap. You can't be two-faced and still expect people to like you. And, do you know what the hurts most about this? It's a fact that I actually thought we were making progress. That we were slowly becoming dare I say; friends. But then, you pulled this move and prove to me that you're still the same you. You're still hiding behind the façade and—"

Kim stops talking when Jack suddenly takes her face in his hands and kisses her. It wasn't romantic nor was it gentle. It was a heat of the moment that took both their breaths away. "I get it, okay," Jack mumbles, pulling away from Kim, "I know I'm this horrible person; but you, you make me feel things I never felt before and I'm fucking scared, alright. I don't know how to explain it, but you mean something to me and all I'm asking for is another chance, please."

And so, after that slightly awkward moment in the rain filled with emotion and a new sense of understanding; the two were inseparable and pushed one another in the best possible way.

Which, leads to right now. Kim is standing in the doorway, watching her boyfriend working on something as she rolls her eyes and lets out a sigh. Swiftly walking over to him, she wraps her arms around his neck, kisses his cheek and whispers, "You're working on this now? It's not due until Friday."

"I know. But, I got a lot of stuff this week," Jack reminds her.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But come on, you need a break. Let's go see our friends for a little bit," Kim suggests, trying to pull Jack away from his laptop.

"Kim, I can't. I need to finish this," Jack fights back.

"Nope, not today," Kim fires back, quickly grabbing the laptop, saving the document and then closing it.

"Kim, you did not just do that," Jack hisses, glaring at her.

"Yes, I did. Now, come on. You need a break," Kim tells him, extending a hand.

"I hate you right now," Jack mumbles under his breath.

"No you don't. You love me, "Kim smiles sweetly.

"Sadly," Jack groans but sends a wink to Kim.

"Come on lover boy. Let's go," Kim giggles.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Geez," Jack sighs, snatching his laptop out of Kim's hands and shoving it in his backpack. "Are you _always_ going to be like this, princess?"

"Yup, always," Kim grins as the couple makes their way to the door, fingers intertwined and happily in love and dare they say it, but both are starting to become okay with the idea that life is cutting them a break for now. Even if it's only for a little while.


	4. Operation Tangent

**Author's Note:**  
 **Thank you all so much for the support! It really means a ton to us, as always. Hopefully updates will be more frequent!**

* * *

Chapter Three—Operation Tangent  
1000 Hours (10:00 am, EST)  
 _Crawford, Kim_

* * *

"Get up."

Kim's startled out of sleep by Jack's rough voice next to her, eyes snapping open and headache instantly forming in the forefront of her head. The memory she had been dreaming about crumbles, shattering like glass as it's forgotten. Jack glances down at her, rolling his eyes before taking a seat on her cot in the corner. Kim sits up slowly, blinking the grogginess out of her eyes and curling back against the wall again before noticing the food tray in front of her.

Jack watches her stare at the loaf of bread and bottle of water in front of her for ten minutes and fifteen seconds before not being able to stand the silence anymore.

He knows she's hungry and it's striking a nerve within him that she's not eating. He knows his father is going to put her through hell as it is, so she needs to freaking eat before it's too late. "It's not going to kill you, blondie. If anything, it's going to be the only thing that keeps you alive."

Kim avoids looking at him again, because she knows it's him.

She knows it's the same goddamn kid from her teenage years; the same kid she used to love. It took her a bit of staring to figure it out, but it was his eyes that gave it away. She would never forget such handsome eyes, or such handsome hair, for that matter. It wasn't only that though—the chain looped through his pants pocket, he used to do that when he was a teenager. At the time, he had claimed it was a 'badass fashion choice the world had yet to discover'. Who knew that nearly a decade later, it would become true.

She's foggy in some of the memories she has of him, but perfectly clear in others.

 _Oh, hell no._

"Oh hell no what?"

Eighteen year old Jack mocks as he turns around from looking at himself in the mirror, giving his girlfriend a pointed look. Kim rolls her eyes, adverting her attention away from his bare upper torso as she sorts through the stack of mail sitting in front of her.

"That little Backstreet-Boy-Heartbreaker getup you have on. I'm not leaving this damn house with you looking like that." Jack smirks, sauntering over and taking a seat on the bed behind her. He wraps his arms around her lower torso, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Come on. I know you love me, and my N' Sync qualities. I think I'm better looking than Timberlake right now." Kim groans, trying to shove him off of her.

"Jack you look like a reject from the music video for Bye, Bye, Bye."

He chuckles, burying his face into her shoulder. It's a casual Tuesday morning for the two at Kim's house (as causal as you can get when you have a free day off from school for a state convention), and her parents are out at breakfast which means the house is theirs to use. Kim had gone outside to get her mail and came back to Jack up in the attic, raiding her father's old eighties clothes.

Within twenty minutes, she had come face to face with a boy band throwaway.

Jack was dressed in baggy pants and had a white bandanna over his forehead, with no top just to make Kim blush a little at his muscles. To finish off his look, he had a metal chain looped through the pants pocket.

They had about ten minutes before they would have to leave for work (because school might've been cancelled but work never seemed to go away) and go their separate ways and Kim wasn't having any of it . . . and was about to run her boyfriend over if he didn't get changed out of being an one hit wonder.

"Dammit Jack will you just get changed? We have to leave soon."

He shakes his head as Kim pulls out a letter addressed to Jack's name and starts to tear it open, shivering at his fingers trailing underneath the back of her tank-top before standing up and walking away. "Jack stop it. Lemme read this."

He falls backwards on the bed, protesting with a loud moan of discontentment. "Kim," he whines, "come on. I want to spend some time with my princess before we have to go to work. At different places, might I add." Kim pulls out the paper with a shrug of the shoulders, scanning her eyes down the letter before realizing it was a bill.

"Jack?"

"Hmm?"

She turns to him, walking over and dropping the bill on his stomach. "Let me see it." Jack sits up straight, grabbing the paper and reading it before remembering that he had written down Kim's house as his home address for the bill so his father wouldn't know what he had done.

"Kim I—"

"Now."

Jack obeys silently, reaching a hand down to grab the hem of his pants and boxers and pulling them down just enough so that Kim can see the ink glued to the skin of his right hipbone.

It's black as night, but no other colors are needed because the tattoo speaks for itself. Silhouettes of soldiers marching brand the skin in the formation of a single leaf, and underneath are the words _Lest We Forget_ in fancy handwriting that looks like it's been scratched onto the skin with a military knife itself.

Kim reaches out a gentle finger and strokes the outline of one of the men, smiling softly. "Jack," she whispers, "it's beautiful." He beams, feeling his pounding heartbeat return to normal at his girlfriend's response.

"You said you hated tattoos, so that's why I didn't tell you. I'm sorry princess, but I was afraid to tell you." Kim shakes her head, looking up at him.

"I don't. But on you, it looks amazing." She pauses, tracing the outline of the words, admiring their splendor, admiring their significance. "You got this for your father?" She questions, hoping bringing up his father doesn't put a damper on the conversation.

Jack's jaw goes hard, but he shakes his head, glancing at her modestly. "Though I've been groomed for the military . . . I still respect it, you know? I respect everything they've done. Everything they will do and I wanted to honor that."

Kim grins tenderly, but there's love bold in her eyes. "How did I ever find you?"

He shrugs, "That fucking history project."

She laughs and then Kim moves forwards and their lips connect in a powerful kiss, one that takes his breath away. He drops his clothes so that his hands can stroke her back while hers tangle in his hair. Jack pulls back for air, "Don't we have to leave soon?"

Kim pulls him in for another kiss before replying, "Yeah, but I rather be here with you." He smiles as he presses a kiss to her forehead before flipping themselves over on the bed.

"Anything you want, princess."

 _I love you._

Kim is shocked out of her memory by Jack's knuckles knocking against the metal frame of the bed.

"What, you got a hearing issue now? I said eat before it gets taken away from you. Commander doesn't stray from anything cruel." Kim can't help but scoff, putting together the vagrant pieces that the Commander is Jack Brewer's very own father. To think she didn't like the asshole back when they were together in high school either.

Condescending asshole.

Kim still says nothing, but she does stretch forward and grab the white bread, bringing it to her lips and taking a careful bite. The motion of chewing hurts her teeth after not doing it in what seems to be so long, and her jaw cracks with every new bite.

"About time," Jack murmurs from his spot, turning back to picking at his fingernails.

Kim glances over at him when she thinks he isn't paying attention, taking in his new features and comparing them to the old. He's bulkier. Much bulkier. His muscles were never that big, and his attitude was never that bad. His hands were never that calloused, and his hair was never that long. And he's never had that damn tattoo on the inside of his wrist.

It's uglier than the one she recalls so unmistakably, and she wonders why he even got it. Jack wasn't one for worthless pain, for doing things just because he could. That wrist tattoo went against all of that . . . unless, Kim ponders, it wasn't his choice.

"What's that tattoo on your wrist?" She calls out casually, nibbling on the crust of her breakfast.

Jack seems shocked at the aspect of her actually talking and he's so startled he has to look up at her to make sure it was actually her who had talked and not a ghost coming back to haunt him. Next he clears his throat, before flipping his hand around and staring hatefully down at his wrist.

"I didn't get this fucker by choice," he mutters irritably, dragging a nail down the middle like as if he can erase it from his arm just like that, "and I'm not proud of it." The first thing Kim notices about the tattoo as she stares at it is that it's black.

It's dark, heavy, and even evil. It's about the size of her closed fist, casing his arm like a trademark.

Jack says nothing of Kim's staring, too engrossed in gazing at her focused face. He's seen that face before; it's locked away in the back of his mind somewhere. He just doesn't know where. Kim challenges him. "How did you get it?"

Jack shakes his head with a biter chuckle, his eyes darkening. "Ever read Harry Potter?"

Kim's lips twist into a straight line, prepared to answer his smartass comment that's sure to be coming with a calculated answer. "Of course," she says as she finishes her bread with a final bite, before reaching over for the bottle of water, "why?"

The look on his face borderlines one of insanity, like as if the story of getting the tattoo is one twisted joke. "You know how uh," he clears his throat loudly, "the Death Eaters have a symbol—a tattoo—on their arm to call Voldemort?"

Kim nods, listening intently.

"My dad, Commander, wanted that. So about three years back, he gathered everyone up and told us of his grand plan." Jack pauses, grinding his teeth together for a moment. "He wanted to copy that idea; _God forbid one of us gets lost behind enemy lines_ , he said, _this will be a way to identify our brothers_ he claimed. So, on August tenth, in the sweltering heat, he lined up all of his men outside—our _entire_ organization—separated us by our ranks and our jobs and had everyone tattooed. The tattoo varied by what you did, _do_ , but the message stayed the same. You are one of us, forever."

Jack's story finishes on a harsh note, and Kim directs her attention away from his face and back to his tattoo.

It's faded now, but black. Black ink, as dark as night, twirling and curling into the outline of a skull. There's a crooked cigar hanging out of the skull's partly open mouth, grey puffs of smoke trailing outwards from the end. A military helmet hangs over the bald forehead, about to titter off, and slashed lines are imprinted in the bulky leather. And in small bulky font underneath the skull, sits three simple words _death fears us_.

It isn't a symbol of honor or meaning. It's a symbol of death, of fear.

Of someone—something—that doesn't represent Jackson Christopher Brewer.

After the silence fades into the soft hum of gears clinking and systems kicking on in the other room, Kim looks back up to Jack's face and smiles softly. "Do you still have your tattoo?"

Jack sends her a look of confusion, "Wha—"

"Do you still have your tattoo? The one you got by choice?"

He stares at her in what could only be stunned amazement. The seconds slowly turned into minutes and then when exactly five passed Jack stood up. Kim stood up too, instinct kicking in as he moved towards her. He stopped when he was an inch from her face, locking eyes with her. "How did you know that I . . . ?"

Kim shrugs her shoulders, "Just a hunch."

 _Do we have to?_

Kim chuckles, pulling on her boyfriend's belt by the hoops to turn him around.

His front faces the mirror now as she smiles in success before turning around and tossing him the dress shirt she already has picked out for him on his bed. It hits him directly in the back of his head with a smack. "Yes, we have to. Jack, it's not like you haven't met my parents before. They like you and all."

Jack groans as he yanks the shirt off his face and slips it over his head. Kim rolls her eyes before heading out into the hallway to grab Jack's newly steam-dried tie. "I hate parent dinners, princess." He whines when she enters the room again, walking over and slinging the tie over his shoulders as he finishes buttoning up his dress shirt.

Jack grabs the tie off his shoulders with ease, recoiling when he sees what it is in the mirror. "Oh Kim," he moans, " _no_."

Kim smirks, "What? You look handsome all dressed up in a tie and all."

Jack shakes his head, "You know I _hate_ ties, princess. Please don't make me beg." Kim laughs, moving forwards and resting her head on his shoulder.

"Jack." He sends her a pointed look.

"Kim."

His pleading look stares at her through the mirror for four more seconds before Kim gives in. "Fine. Don't wear a tie." He grins as she turns away and he tosses the tie back onto the bed.

"But seriously Kim, do we really have to do this?"

"Yes. Mom said she was making your favorite—homemade Crawford ravioli." She waits for him to smile but he never does, instead keeping a steady face as he smooths his hair down. "Hey," Kim voices, "talk to me." Jack sighs, flipping around to face her with a shrug.

"I don't know princess. I just got a bad feeling about tonight. It's just an off night."

"Why would you say that?"

Jack moves towards her, taking a seat on the bed next to her, "I don't know. Just a hunch."

"Nothing is gonna happen, babe. Dad might get a little drunk off red wine and Mom might get a little loud but it's nothing new. You made it through the three other dinners we've been to. We can make it through this one." Kim leans forwards and pressed a kiss to his cheek, running her hand over his back. "Alright?"

"Alright." Jack turns to catch her in a kiss on the lips. "Let's do this."

 _Let's not be late._

Jack looks down and goes to pull at the hem of his shirt, barely able to lift it up an inch before the door slams open.

He jumps backwards as Commander and Barricade slander in, warped smiles on both of their criminal faces. Kim slowly angles herself so that she's partly behind Jack as both men open up the cell door, Commander sending his son a malevolent smile.

"How is Venus doing today, Vengeance? Everything going well?"

Jack bites on his lower lip, holding back a growl of _fuck off_.

"Just fine," he answers instead, feeling Kim's breath on his shoulder.

Commander nods, "Good." He turns to Kim. "I'm glad you've been having such a good time, sweetheart. But I'm afraid that's not what you're here for. Grab her." His last words are directed to Barricade who barrel's into the room but stops when Jack takes a step forward. Jack looks over to his father, scowl plastered over his features.

"What are we doing with her?" Commander chuckles, crossing his arms.

" _We_ aren't do anything. You are going to go and help out in mess hall until Barricade, Bear and I are done with Venus here. Now get a move on solider. Or else I'm having you reassigned for good." Jack sets his jaw and gains a steely look to his eye before stepping out of the way.

Kim looks over at him, but he's avoiding her eyes at all costs.

She wants to call out for him as Barricade takes her by the arm and roughly starts to direct her out the cell, she wants to scream for him to save her. But she can't. She knows she can't. He's not the person she used to know anymore. The person, the Jack Brewer she used to know, would've stood his ground and kicked the asses of anyone who tried to get past him.

But that teen—that brave-hearted man—was gone.

Commander steps out of the way so that Barricade and Kim can exit and within seconds they're out of Jack's sight. Commander looks to his son, shaking his head. "Don't grow attached to that girl, son. You'll regret it. And I'll give you hell for it. Nothing ends well in this kind of situation, believe me."

Commander smiles grimly one final time before walking away and leaving Jack standing alone in Kim's cell. His fists are clenched at his sides, head pounding because he doesn't know what's going on and why that damned girl seemed so familiar.

"Fuck you," he mutters to the spot where his father used to stand, before angrily making his way out of the stuffy room and towards the mess hall.

His head thunders with forgotten memories, and memories that have hung with him for far too long that he's never been able to truly process.

Or truly figure out.


	5. Operation Red

~Author's Note~

Hey guys! Thank you all for the reviews! Once again, you guys can blame my late updating schedule for this one in the morning update . . . oops. Anyway, enjoy! :)

* * *

Chapter Four—Operation Red  
1941 Hours (7:41 pm, EST)  
 _Crawford, Kim_

* * *

The tension in the air was thick. Thick enough to cut with a knife.

And Kim, she didn't like it. At all. When she realized that the guy holding her prisoner was someone she once knew and someone who doesn't remember her, it hurt. Not as bad as when they broke up, but she'll always feel the sting.

She loved him once. She truly did.

And now, all reasonable thinking went out the window. This was a wake-up call and something that demanded answers.

She was stuck here. With people who didn't give a shit about her. She didn't know why she was here or what they were going to do with her. But, she did know that at the end of all of this, she was more than likely not going to survive. The torture hasn't been horrible. Tolerable at most. But she knew their patience was running thin. Sitting alone in a cell got Kim thinking a lot about her past, their past.

That expression on his face was all too familiar.

She remembers when she saw it first. And then, when it became more frequent. It became so frequent, that that was just the look he displayed. Every day. It wasn't necessarily a dark expression, but it wasn't pleasant either.

Just blank. And maybe a little intense.

Most days he had that look when he was stressed and had a lot to deal with. Like, dealing with his controlling father. But when it became so frequent, she starting noticing small changes.

That he was more nervous, anxious and jumpy.

He was distant one day but then turned around later and was her sweet boyfriend again. And then one day, there was one moment in particular that changed everything.

* * *

It was like any normal day, except, it kind of wasn't.

Kim was sitting in math class and Jack was nowhere to be seen. Twenty minutes later, Kim grabs a hall pass and starts walking halls only to pass a window and sees Jack outside and talking with a group of guys she's never seen before.

Curiosity gets the best of her as she's quickly makes her way outside to find out what's happening.

Staying hidden behind one of the brick walls, she hears talks of _meeting up later tonight dude_ and _damn straight man_. Though she's not happy about it, she's going to trust him. However, all her plans of trusting him are thrown out the window when he catches her spying on him.

"What the hell are you doing out here?" He sneers but there's something hidden behind that look he's giving her.

"I came looking for you." She snaps back, glaring at him.

"So what? I don't show up for one class and now you're checking up on me and putting your nose where it doesn't belong?" He inquires darkly, and Kim knows something is up.

"First off, back the hell up. Secondly, I wasn't snooping. I was out here for like a minute. And thirdly, yes. I was worried about you. Sue me. Just a word of advice, those guys are trouble. Don't get mixed up with them," she finishes brusquely before spinning on her heels and walking away. Jack watches her, but she doesn't see it.

The couple doesn't talk for the rest of the day or evening and when morning comes, Jack feels like the biggest jerk on the planet. He shouldn't have gone off on Kim like that yesterday. She had nothing to do with this.

It's him, the guys and his father.

After this job, he was done.

At school, over the next few days, Jack and Kim worked their problems out and things were good. Until they weren't. He did what he was supposed to do, but couldn't get out. At least not yet. So, he lied to his girlfriend and was living a double life. In the beginning, he thought he was doing a good job at keeping things separated. Which, he was.

But someone else wanted to ruin his streak and put him back in his place. So ultimately, he had to choose. Them or her? His decision didn't work out.

But of course it didn't.

* * *

It started off as a nice Saturday night. The air was crisp and smelled of freshly cut grass, the sky a bright spatter of colors thrown together. Clouds were drifting in from the west, fluffy ones entering from the east. Jack and Kim were hanging out at his place, thankful his parents were out for the night, and enjoying their time together.

Things were going great.

They ordered pizzas, made ice cream sundaes and were now cuddled together on the sofa and watching a movie when the front door suddenly opens and his parents entered. Jack and Kim immediately jump up as both parents stare at the teenagers with unpleasant and suspicious expressions.

"Mom, Dad." Jack starts, "What are you doing home so early?" He finishes, quickly starting to clean up the mess.

"Well, we ran into a few people who shared something very interesting with me." His father, Erik, replied in a sharp tone.

"Oh, really?" Jack inquires with a raised eyebrow and feeling his heart rate increase. "Who'd you run into?"

"Who I ran in to isn't the problem. What I found out is. I think it's best if she leaves. This is a family matter and doesn't concern her." Jack's father states bluntly, harshly, looking at Kim with revulsion. Jack feels his heart-rate speed up, from fear or hate he doesn't know, but he does know if he doesn't listen it'll be much worse.

His mother nods in agreement, gives Kim a once over look and then motions him to hurry up.

"Sorry Kim," Jack mumbles softly, leading her to the front door. His parents move out of the way and Kim voices polite goodbyes, not liking the coldness in the room.

Neither answer at first but then Erik gives a curt nod and speaks, "Two minutes," as the couple are making their way to Kim's car on the sidewalk. They both know that whatever's going on and whatever's going to happen inside that house will not only be horrible, but will cause a strain in all their relationships.

And, it did. Wedged a whole between everyone.

Jack not only got belittled when he reentered the house, but watched his mother leave the room as his father went on a fuming rampage. His entire family was a fucking dysfunctional mess and it's no wonder why he's so screwed up.

* * *

Over the next handful of days, Kim doesn't mention what happened over the weekend and Jack was beyond grateful for that. He sure as hell didn't want an reenactment or repeat on went on between him and his egotistical father. But as the days and weeks go by, along with the constant voices of his father's words of being an imbecile, worthless and a disgrace to the family name on repeat, the anger never leaves.

There were days when Jack ignored everyone and everything around him. Or by an unfortunate chance, the littlest thing would set him off. His vexation was affecting his relationship with Kim and she wasn't having any of it. No, she was going to put Jack back in his place and remind him of the guy he is. Not the guy he has to be.

And, since the duo had such a good relationship, Jack understood where Kim was coming from. Plus, he needed to fix the all damage he's done.

"I'm sorry Kimmy. It's just—my dad's such a douche sometimes," he sighs, running his hands down his face after she had cornered him into talking to her. Frankly, she was just glad he didn't direct his anger her way.

"I know, Jack. Trust me. I see it all the time. But, you should know that you don't deserve this. This is your life, not his. Do what you need to do to survive and be the guy I know you are," Kim encourages, leaning forward kissing Jack's cheek. Any time Jack had a real, deep conversation with Kim. He felt a sense of relief and had a clearer mind.

Only, it didn't last long.

Every day he was in a conflict. The good side or the evil side. Kim's words always battled his father's and it only drove him more insane. He loved Kim, more than he ever thought possible. But, he also has orders from his father and he couldn't just ignore them.

No matter what he did, he was screwed either way.

* * *

For a few weeks, this went on.

Kim voicing her opinions and trying to reason with Jack or his father always reminding him where he came from. Now, it wasn't until a very heated confrontation with his father, an argument with Kim and completing an impossible task when everything came crashing down.

It happened no more than two hours ago when Kim was over at the Brewer's for dinner. Right there should've been a red flag. But like everything else, Jack let it slide under the radar.

It wasn't until dessert, when Erik calmly shared, in front of everyone, "Scorpio has another assignment for you, Jackson."

At that, the room went silent.

Kim looked between Jack and his father, in disbelief, shock and feeling a sense of betrayal. Jack glared at his father for pulling such a dick move and then looked at Kim, pleading with her to hear him out. But, with the blank stare on her face, he knew that this was one he couldn't quickly get out of.

"Thank you for an, um, stimulating dinner Mr. and Mrs. Brewer. I'll see myself out," Kim peacefully announces, swiftly standing up and walking out of the dining room. Jack rapidly flew out of his chair and followed Kim, who was already outside and running to her car.

"Kim! Wait!" He shouts desperately trying to grab her by the elbow but failing.

"I can't believe you!" Kim bellowed, causing an echo to resound down the street. "You lied to me. You lied straight to my face!"

"I know," Jack replies, running a hand down his face.

"You know? Oh great. That makes everything better," Kim snaps bitterly, rolling her eyes as she tries to unlock the driver's side door.

"Kim—"

"No, Jack. You can't talk your way out of this one. I trusted you. I believed in you. I loved you. And you, you lied to me for months. You need to figure out your priorities and who you want to be," Kim finishes as she succeeds in unlocking her car and entering; slamming the door shut behind her. Jack cringes at the sound.

Feeling like his heart has been stabbed a few hundred times, he turns around to go back inside to face the music.

"Jack," his mother soothes, offering him a hug when he reaches the table.

"Don't Mom. I know you don't even care. You never approved of Kim," Jack says, shaking his head and scoffing.

"Yes, that's true. But, you're my son and I care about you," Lana replies, attempting to keep her voice firm yet caring (which she fails at).

"You _just_ care about me? You don't love me? And, if you did care about me, why did you never stop this? Why couldn't I have had a normal childhood?" Jack demands.

"Jackson, don't you ever talk to your mother in that tone," Erik barks from the kitchen, turning off the sink and throwing a dish down into the pile resting there.

"Or what? You going to beat me? News flash dad, I've been through it all," Jack hisses, throwing his hands up because he's so pissed he can't stand it anymore.

A deep, evil chuckle fills the room as Erik just looks at Jack with a straight face and says, "This is only the beginning."

"What happened to you Jackson?" Lana murmurs suddenly, interrupting the two. "You use to be fearless. It's that girl. She's changed you and you don't even realize it."

With everything continuing to stack up against him, Jack leaves his parents in need of fresh air.

The evening sky illuminates with stars, but the heavy weight he's feeling, it makes everything else feel dull and lifeless.

As much as he wants everything to work out, he knows it's not even possible. And, his mother's words still float around and strike a cord. She made a valid point. He wasn't who he was before. He thought Kim was right for him. But maybe, just maybe, she's the one who ruined everything. Maybe it wasn't his father after all. But her and her manipulative ways.

So many thoughts ran into through his mind and hopefully, after a good nights rest and some time alone, he would find all the right answers.

* * *

Monday morning rolls around and with a determined mind, Jack went searching for the one person who changed everything.

She was busy working in the student government room when he barged right in.

The slamming of the door startled Kim, but when she saw who it was, she went back to what she was working on.

"We need to talk," he states rudely.

"Wow, we're starting like this? Okay," Kim nods, biting her cheek to keep calm.

"Ever since we started dating, I knew there was something about you that intrigued me. You were fierce, independent and quite relentlessness. All that time I spent with you, I was entranced by you. But somewhere along the way, I lost me. I had dreams and goals. I had a future where I knew where I was going. And then, you suddenly go on your perfect girlfriend act and ruin everything," Jack growls.

"Don't you dare put this on me. I didn't do anything. You're your own person, Jack. You're a big boy. I didn't put a leash on you and make you do anything you didn't want to do. You liked that I challenge you. You liked that I have my own opinions. What happened to that, huh?" Kim argues.

"You know, I did like that you weren't like all the other girls. But, that was a problem. You didn't like what I was doing and you didn't like my friends. And before, I accepted it. I pushed it aside and figured out a way to work around it. But now, I know that it wasn't them that was the problem. It was you. You tried to change me. You tried to make me forget where I came from," Jack retorts, clenching his jaw.

"That's bullshit and you know it. Though, you're right to an extent. Of course I didn't like what you were doing, Jack. It was dangerous. I didn't necessarily like your friends but I never held you back from hanging out with them. And, I never once tried to change you. I just waned to protect you. I wanted you still be alive after every job. I wanted you to have a future where you didn't owe anyone. I wanted us to have to have a clean slate," Kim counters, her cheeks turning a soft pink.

"You, you, you. It's always about you," Jack yells. "I should've listened to my mother."

"Your mother?" Kim spits out. "What does she to do with any of this?"

"My mom never liked you. Which is surprising because she likes everyone. That should've been clue one. And, while I'm on a roll, I should've listened to my gut too. Now normally, I'm never wrong. But in some slim instances, I'll admit that I was a little too caught up m my job and all I had to do, that I missed something really important. Something that came to me over the weekend," Jack spoke coolly.

"And what would that be?" Kim urges impatiently.

"That better on my own. Without you around this weekend, I finally got to think and breathe. I'm not holding onto you or us anymore. You and me, we're done," Jack finishes without emotion an the swiftly turns around and leaves. Kim stands there, watching Jack's retreating form get further and further away. And though she's in shock, she's never been more hurt than she is now.

But, if her year with Jack has taught her anything, it's that no one will see the effect of the breakup. She'll carry her head high like she always does and will pretend like she doesn't have a care in the world.

She'll be stronger and wiser, and Jack, he'll be a distant memory she'll learn from.

* * *

The news of the breakup spread like wild fire after one person found out and over the next weeks, the stares and whispers followed the two everywhere.

Kim was her smiling self, keeping busy with school activities and Jack, become cold and heartless. And, all the love he once had for Kim was gone, nonexistent. He felt nothing for her in realized he was a fool for allowing her to break down his walls. she was the cause to all his problems. But now, and from here on out, he was going to do what he's always worked and trained for. If only, it was as easy as it sounds.

But he was a Brewer. Nothing was going to stand in his way.

Until now. Until this. Until she came back.


	6. Operation Urban Angel

**Hey everyone! We have a few things to say before the chapter so please, bear with us.**

 **First off, thank you for all the reviews and support. This was an idea we were both excited writing about and having such awesome feedback makes us feel like we made the right choice.**

 **Secondly, for those few who are not pleased with our story, we're sorry. But, it's not going anywhere. We know it's darker. We made it clear in the first chapter. So though we'd hate to lose you, if you're uncomfortable, you don't have to continue reading it. Not every chapter will be dark but we're creating a story that has angles and depth. Also, if you've followed any of our work before, you know our style of writing. If you want fun stories, we can give you some.**

 **And lastly, we thought it'd be fun to play a little game. For those of you who have followed our stories over the years know our style. So now the question is, do you know who wrote what chapter? If you need to remember our names, go to our bio!**

* * *

Chapter Five—Operation Urban Angel  
2116 Hours (9:16 pm, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

* * *

The clock strikes nine sixteen when Jack's cleaning out the big metal bowl that used to hold runny mashed potatoes, and he's the only one left besides a few underpaid janitors moseying around.

No one's really around because the base usually clears out around ten for bed.

He's been on mess hall duty since his father had dismissed him around eleven that morning, and so far he's served over one-hundred breakfast meals, three-hundred lunch meals and five-hundred and twenty-nine dinner meals. The amount of men that came in and ate varied on what time of day it was, as many opted out for breakfast but were the first in line for dinner.

It was a dull job to have, and Jack knew his father had thrown him on it just to piss him off, and hell if that didn't work.

As he was serving crispy bacon and under-cooked pancakes for breakfast, his mind was focused on the thought of why his father refused to let Jack come with him for interrogation. When lunch rolled around with gooey chicken sandwiches and roasted beans, his thoughts had drifted to Kim. If she okay, if he was stupid for leaving her alone with his father. He didn't care for her, no. He was far from it, but he couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right—that something was wrong.

Three times he was close to leaving, just to check on her, but he thought against it.

Burnt cheesesteaks and slushy mashed potatoes followed for dinner, and by then his fingers were twitching from nervousness about not being called back yet to be back on guard duty.

He didn't care about her. He did _not_ care about her. He didn't. He just . . . he just needed her to be okay. Because if she wasn't okay, then he wasn't okay and if he wasn't okay then nothing was okay and—

"Save anything for me?"

Jack shakes off the overwhelming amount of odd thoughts that had just encircled him to turn away from the sink and look up at the serving counter, seeing no other than a young girl about his age standing there.

She's dressed in a white tank-top with some green camo pants that clash with her bright blonde hair. She kind of looked like Kim, if put in a certain light, but Jack throws that thought away as fast as it comes up. Silver dog-tags wrap around her neck, and there's some white gauze over her left shoulder. Her form is skinny, but there's muscle there too, and her brown combat boots are worn with mud and grime.

He nearly scoffs when she sends him a smart smile; like she's right about how _food should be here_ and he's wrong for cleaning up the mess because _no, it should not_.

"Who are you?" He blurts, mentally slapping himself because really, that's the best answer he has?

The woman's smile widens, as she flicks some hair behind her ear. "Taylor."

Jack can't help but raise an eyebrow, "Just Taylor?"

She nods her head, looking smug. "No one really needs to know anything else about me."

Jack nearly rolls his eyes. He knows for a fact any higher-up you run into around here will always ask for something more than just your name—maybe your rank, squad, something of the like. This girl really thought she knew it all.

Jack simply turns around, flipping the faucet back on and continuing to scrub the bowl in his hands. "Well, Just Taylor," he calls over the running water, "sorry to tell you, but dinner was at six sharp. It's easy to say you missed it, by a few hours."

He smirks to himself as he finishes cleaning the bowl.

Stupid rookies, always thinking they know _everything_. He flips on his heel to place the bowl on the rack next to him and freezes when he sees Taylor rummaging through the cabinets to the left of him.

 _Oh, shit._

"Hey, hey, what're you doing?" He shouts, quickly hanging the bowl up, turning off the water, and wiping his hands on his pants. Taylor pulls out one of the two wrapped plates Jack has hidden in the cabinet for Jerry and he physically pales.

Oh, Jerry was going to _kill him_ for letting someone touch his food.

"Y-Y-You can't be back here!" Jack sputters, lost at what to do. No one's ever not listened to him before, because typically his glare is enough to send even the strongest guy running, but this girl had guts. A lot of freaking guts. And Jerry was about to walk in any minute and Jack was going to be screwed. See, the two had a deal where if one was working mess hall (which one of them usually was) and the other wasn't seen at dinner, the former would save a plate for their friend. Or two. Or three.

But how in the hell this girl figured out where the extra food was—oh. _Shit_. Jack's thought process is cut off by Taylor un-doing the wrapping and picking up the cheesesteak, putting it to her mouth and taking a big, fat bite out of the cheesy crust.

 _Oh, fuck_.

Jack's entire body stops still, and it's like he's been shot at close range, but at the same time not because he knows he's not dead yet but he will be once Jerry comes in and sees his food being demolished by this—this _monster_.

God. He's so dead.

Taylor jumps up on the counter underneath the cabinets and takes a seat, feet dangling off the edge. She chews with flamboyant, _excruciating_ , loud bites and Jack half-thinks she's doing it on purpose. Which she probably is. And oh God somebody's _eating_ Jerry's food.

Taylor looks over at Jack when she's halfway through the sandwich, and his jaw is wide open from shock. She smirks at him, pausing her eating to speak (how _dare_ she) to him.

"Better close your mouth there, boy, don't wanna get any flies stuck in there." She goes to take another bite but then stops and shakes her head. "You know, it's funny. My dad always says if you're on the same base too long, people just forget who you are after a while."

Then she looks directly at him, and he finally gets a good glimpse at her dog tags. "I've been here longer than you, nearly my whole life. My family's been stationed here, and we haven't moved once. Plus, I used to do that same trick with my friend Mika before her family was transferred. You and your friend should find a better hiding spot."

Taylor grins at him once more before she continues eating as Jack still hasn't spoken a word since she took her first bite.

He's heard legends about this girl and her family, and it even surpasses his time on this base. His family might've been more recognized, but they also moved base to base a lot before their section of the military was officially made and they made official base _here. S_ o he had more military background, but this girl for sure had more base background. Her family had been on this base for three generations now, and hadn't moved away once.

All the children got education on the base, and grew up pure military.

Just Taylor was the next head in line to carry-on the family name, as her parents were growing too old to be of service. He didn't know if he still held first place for having the most stress on his shoulders anymore.

Jack lets out a heavy exhale, running both of his hands through his hair. He glances back at Taylor, who has now finished off her cheesesteak, grabbed a plastic fork, and is now mowing through her potatoes like there's no tomorrow.

"B-But you can't just waltz back here and steal my buddy's food. He's gonna freak—"

She shrugs. "A girl's gotta eat. Besides, I just got back from a two month long undercover mission in the jungle. I'm allowed to be hungry. You go live on warm cans of Spam for that long." She shivers, stomach grumbling softly in painful remembrance.

Jack slams a palm to his face, dragging it downwards. "Oh he's gonna fucking kill me." Jack starts pacing, Taylor watching calmly from the counter. "Not only did I let someone eat his food, but a girl at that—"

"Hey!" She objects, rolling her eyes, "There's two plates of food in here anyway. I'm only eating one. What's the big deal? Tell your friend to learn how to share."

Jack stops pacing, staring at her.

"No one, and I repeat _no one_ , steals Jerry Martinez's food."

As if on cue, the mess hall doors slam open and a cocky looking Jerry slanders into the room. Jack almost thinks about making a run for it and then decides against it. Jerry walks right up to the serving counter, running a hand through his sweat-ridden hair.

"Whoo," he calls, meeting Jack's eyes over the metal barrier. "Man have I mentioned how much I hate your father?"

Jack sighs, crossing his arms. "More than a few times, Jer."

Jerry shakes his head, already starting to strip out of his military shirt so that he can get some air. Taylor watches partially amused from behind Jack on the counter.

"Well I hate him. He catches me on the way back to Venus' cell and says how I'm late for training—which I'm not, I'm just fashionably late as everyone knows—and then tells me to hustle over there. So I do, not without stopping at one of the snack machines and getting a bag of Cheetos first, but anyway; I finally get there and he's pissed that I'm late so he pushes me so damn hard that I feel like a bowl of Jell-O. Then he's got the nerve to give me a rant after training, like a twenty minute rant! Then I gotta get all the way back here to get my food and God, Jack, I really just hate your—"

"Wait, wait, wait." Taylor's voice cuts off Jerry's rant and both heads turn to look at her as she directs her gaze directly to Jack. "Your name is Jack?"

Silence follows her words for a good fifteen seconds before Jerry notices the almost-empty plate in her hands and narrows his eyes. Jack answers at the same time Jerry stomps over to where she's sitting and asks a simple question that seems to rumble through the kitchen.

"Yeah, my name is Jack. Jack Brewer."

"Is that _my_ food?"

Jerry's face is less than an inch away from Taylor so she has to answer him first, which she does by shoving some more potatoes on her fork and then lifting it up and eating it. Jerry's face goes red and Jack watches the two's interaction warily. "You're eating _my_ food?"

He tries to make his voice sound as menacing as possible. But he fails horribly as Taylor laughs directly in his face.

When she catches her breath, Jerry's already reaching over her and grabbing the plate in the cabinet. "You've got another plate up there." Jerry grunts in answer, struggling to reach the damned thing without crushing the girl underneath him.

"I know."

Taylor can't help but stare at his defined chest for a minute, because, admittedly, the thin layer of sweat overtop his muscles kind of makes the guy look a little hot. Not that she would admit that. Ever. Jerry grabs his plate with a sturdy hand and takes a seat on the counter next to Taylor, hungrily unwrapping the plate and stuffing half the cheesesteak in his mouth all in one swift movement.

Jack's lips tilt up in a smile when he sees the disgusted look at crosses Taylor's face. She turns away from Jerry to see the look Jack's sending her, and she glares at him. "Shut up. At least my name isn't Jackass." Jack's humorful expression drops.

"My name is not Jackass, Just Taylor. It's Jack."

"Sorry, what was that, Jackass?"

Jerry snuffs his laugh by digging into his potatoes, stealing Taylor's fork in the process, and Jack groans. "Screw you both." He replies solely, as Taylor hits Jerry's bare shoulder in response to taking her silverware.

Jack leans back against the metal counters behind him, shaking his head and adding his two cents to every tease Taylor sends Jerry's way that he can tag a smartass comment onto. Five minutes barely pass by the time Jerry cleans off his plate, and Taylor's saying something about him being _such a drama queen with his food_ when Jack actually laughs.

Jerry stops dead in his track and looks at his friend, a genuine smile splitting across his face.

"What?" Jack queries, lips still stretched into a beam. Jerry shrugs his shoulders, Taylor smiling gently at the scene of brotherhood before her.

"It's . . . nothing, dude. Just . . . you laughed. You haven't laughed like that since," he trails off and a subtle darkness overcomes them, but it disappears when Jack speaks.

"I don't know what you're talking about dude. I laugh all the time."

"Yeah, but not like that. That was true."

Jack seems at lost for words as he looks down at his boots, and Taylor notices the tension suddenly cutting thick into the room. "My friend Mika did the same thing but it was because of a boy." Jerry gasps overdramatically, like he's discovered something great.

"It's because of Kim, isn't it?"

Jack looks offended at the proposal. "What? No. No, of course not."

Jerry ignores Jack, instead turning to Taylor and filling her in. "Kim is one of our prisoners because Jack's dad thinks her parents are the key to stopping terrorism and blah, blah, blah. But, she acts like she knows him. And I think he knows her too but he won't admit it or don't remember it because amigo there's just a certain sense there, ya know?"

Taylor nods, "Okay. I think? So, what you're telling me, is that your friend Jackass here just needs to stop being a jackass and get with this girl?"

Jerry acts like he's thinking about it for a moment. "Basically."

Taylor turns to Jack, "Well, Jackass, go be her knight in shining armor!"

Jack scowls, kicking at the floor. "It's not that easy."

Jerry sighs, throwing his arms up. "I tried." Taylor hits him. Again.

"Not hard enough, obviously."

Jack's phone rings, shattering the three's peace and he grabs it out of his pocket and presses the answer button without even thinking about it first. "Hello?" He answers carelessly, mask back in place.

"You're back on guard duty for Venus. Get to it, solider." That's all his father says before he hangs up, and the bitter tone to his voice already has Jack nervous.

"What's wrong, dude?"

Jack's already halfway through the room, and he turns back when Jerry's voice slices through his thoughts. "Kim. I gotta get to Kim. Finish cleaning for me and lock up?"

Jack's already gone when Jerry replies with a, "Sure thing dude," and then he turns to Taylor (who he catches staring at his shoulder blades).

It stays quiet around them for a while; the only thing making noise besides the dishwasher running is the clanking of the air conditioner trying to keep up with the nighttime humidity. It's a nice silence, calm and put together. Jerry's shoulder has been bumping with hers for the past twenty minutes they've been sitting there, and it's nice.

He's nice.

She takes another glance at him out of the corner of her eye, watching him.

He's busy staring at the far doors, distracted by thoughts of his friend from what Taylor can assume, and his jaw is clenched just the tiniest bit; just enough for her to see the distinct pull of his tan skin. His face is handsome, and his dark eyes hold a boyishness to them, but the way he holds himself shows seriousness too. Her eyes can't help but to dip down to gape at his muscles, _again_ , and every time he wrings his fingers his veins constrict with the movement.

His biceps are pretty big too, and Taylor has to divert her eyes to keep from blushing too much. The only real flaw she can find is the fact that he has extremely bushy eyebrows, but that's something she can look past. The rest of him is _fine_ , and she's seen worse guys in her life that weren't half as kind.

Taylor jumps off the counter, grabbing both her and Jerry's plates and tossing them in the sink, before throwing the plastic wrapping that had covered them in the trash.

She goes back to the sink to wash off her hands. That's when she feels his arms wrap around her waist slowly, hesitantly, afraid of being pushed away—which is usually something she does when guys try this move, but, for him, she lets it happen. She doesn't know quite why, either.

"Jerry?" She questions quietly, trying to keep a strict voice, "what are you doing?" His warm breath is tickling her neck as she turns on the tap, rinsing her hands under the clean water. Jerry's hands are lapped over her upper stomach, and she's glad he's at least got the decency to be clean.

"Would the answer 'hugging you' work?"

She chuckles as he moves himself closer to her, and then he seems to think about something as she turns off the sink and goes to grab the towel. "Didn't want to say this in front of Jackass but . . . you're kinda beautiful." Taylor feels her cheeks flush, and _oh crap_ she's a goner. His voice is just the right deepness, deep but not too deep, and it's sending tremors down her spine.

"You're kinda handsome, too."

Jerry's the one to laugh this time as Taylor finishes drying off her hands and puts the towel down; before turning herself around in his arms. She didn't realize how close they were until their foreheads nearly bumped into one another and Jerry's mouth is inching closer and closer to hers.

"Would it," he pauses, smiling at her, "would it be okay if I kissed you right now?"

Taylor pretends she's thinking about it, and then smiles at him. "I think it would be more than okay."

Their lips connect and it's like the world's stopped just for them. It's slow and full of passion, and when they both pull away their breathless. "Wow," Taylor whispers, as Jerry laughs softly, one hand resting on her lower back and the other a little higher.

"I take it back," he mumbles, "you're amazing."

Taylor kisses him again before responding with a happy, "I know."

Within five minutes, she's pushed back against the wall with her shirt half off and they're both having the time of their lives. But they're also both realizing that maybe this is crazy for two people that had just met. That thought is wiped away though, once it gets a little more heated.

* * *

Jack doesn't know why he's running so fast.

Or why he's even running at all.

She's probably fine. Fine and fast asleep at this hour.

But he's running anyway.

Jack zigzagging down hallways and turns, dodging half-asleep off-duty men and drunken soldiers just coming back from a mission. He makes it to the door leading into her cell room—where a sleeping guard lays slumped in a chair that Jack runs right pass and into Kim's room. He doesn't see her at first, but when his eyes finally lock on her on the cot in the corner his heart stops.


	7. Operation No Mercy

~Author's Note~

Hey everyone! Thank you all so much for the reviews, as always they mean everything. Another big thanks for everyone who participated in the challenge . . . I'll let you guys in on the big secret. We basically alternate each chapter . . . whoever writes out the AN is the person who did not write the chapter; just edited and all. Pretty cool huh? XD

Also; final message to that spammer in case you decide to come back:  
 _Don't._

Alright guys, enough with me babbling. I hope you all enjoy and leave some feedback with your thoughts! :)

* * *

Chapter Six—Operation No Mercy  
2256 Hours (10:56 pm, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

* * *

Curled up in the corner of the dark room, Jack sees Kim's back facing him as he quietly moves further in.

His heart is still beating out of his chest and he is sure he's overreacting, but there is still something in his gut that forced him to go to her. To make sure she's okay. He knows what his father is capable of and if he hurt Kim in any way, things were going to get ugly. Careful and very gently, Jack starts to roll Kim over so he could see her face and seconds after he did, anger filled his veins.

With only minimal light from the very small window towards the top of the room, Jack could see Kim's cheek was swollen and without thinking, runs a finger over the bump. The action startles Kim as she springs up and pushes herself further into the wall.

"What the fuck do you want?" She snaps at her visitor, who flinches back out of reflex.

"Blondie, calm down," Jack tries to soothe, sitting down in front of her. Her breathing is heavy and ragged, but after a few minutes, goes back to normal and she finally registers him staring at her with a mixture of concern, anger and guilt.

"What are you doing here?" Kim questions, relaxing a bit and staring into Jack's eyes.

"I came to see you," Jack answers bluntly, but honestly.

"Why?"Kim wonders out-loud as Jack scoots further back, not meaning to be so close to her. "

 _Because I wanted to make sure you were okay,_ Jack wanted to say but ultimately replies, "Because I know how Commander can be. He's a real destroyer when he wants to be."

Kim snarls unkindly, rolling her eyes. "That's a nice way to put it."

"Yeah, well, you can't disobey orders. But we aren't talking about that. How's your face?" Jack moves on, feeling an odd connection with this girl.

"Some things never change," Kim mumbles under her breath low enough that he can't hear her and then states firmly, "It's fine. I can take more than you think."

"I'm sure you can," Jack nods, playing along in what Kim believes. But as he gets up to turn on the light, there was something in her conviction that made him stop and think. Maybe she really could handle more. Maybe it's all in her head. But maybe, just maybe she could be the one to take them all down. Ignoring that uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach, Jack switches on the light and then turn back to Kim and breathes out, "Jesus."

"Well, you sure know how to make a girl feel special." Kim hisses sarcastically, glaring at Jack.

"Sorry," Jack grumbles, unable to look past the swollen cheek and bright red hand print.

"It doesn't feel as bad as it looks," Kim tries assure him.

"Yeah, I don't believe that. I'll be right back." Jack announces, turning back around to exit the cell.

"Where are you going?" Kim questions curiously, her stomach lurching at the thought of him leaving her in this cell alone. She mentally yells at herself for being so weak but then all of her thoughts freeze still when he turns back around and looks at her.

"To get you some ice and some painkillers," Jack responds in a sharp tone, hiding the thick feeling in his throat and the heavy feeling in his heart.

"I don't need anything. Just sleep." Kim replies, putting up a strong front, no matter how painful her cheek feels.

"Yes, you do. It'll help you and besides, I don't want to hear you bitching about it later," Jack argues back easily.

"Listen, Virgo. I don't need anything. I can live with the bump on my cheek for the next few days. But what I want, is to know why I'm here. I know my father did some shady stuff back in the day, but I don't know what you're looking for. Also, I want some new clothes. I think I've been in this outfit since I got here. And, better food." Kim lists off, watching Jack's eyes glaring at her and then twitch.

 _Perfect_ , Kim thinks, smiling on the inside, _just where where I want you_.

"First off, it's Vengeance. You better remember that, Blondie. Secondly, stop being so damn stubborn and bitchy. It's fucking annoying. Thirdly, you don't get to make demands. The information regarding you is confidential. I'll see about the clothes, and for the food; that depends on you. You cooperate with us, you get better food. You waste our time like a spoiled brat, you get bread and water. Deal with it. Now, I'm going to go get you a few things." Jack grunts, stomping out of the cell.

As soon as Jack was outside the door, Kim gets up and yells, "Wait! One last thing."

"What?" Jack barks, irritated, as he turns around and becomes face to face with Kim.

"When did you become so heartless?" Kim mutters with a sigh, their eyes locking for a second.

"You don't know a thing about me, princess. Screw you." Jack sneers in a deep voice.

"You already did." Kim exhales in a whisper.

"Excuse me?" Jack demands.

"Nothing. Nothing at all."

Kim shrugs, walking back to her cot and twirling around her small heart necklace in her fingers. Jack's gone within seconds as Kim wonders how long she can keep up this act and what's going to happen to her if she can't help them.

Jack huffs and curses throughout the halls and into their medical center. The girl is pissing him off, in more ways than one and he doesn't understand it. One minute he wants to help her. The next, he wants to strangle her. She is far too complicated for his liking, but he has this ounce of a feeling that she's something more.

Minutes later, he's making his way back to the cell and trying to stay composed. Without speaking, he opens the door and hands Kim a small cup with two pills, a cup of water and a small bag of ice.

"Thanks," Kim mumbles, taking everything and not making a scene.

"Don't thank me yet. If my years here have taught me anything, it's that this is only the beginning. Try and get some rest, Blondie." Jack advises, taking one last glance Kim before leaving. Kim wants to call out for him, wants to say anything to make him _stay_ , but her lips refuse to cooperate. Instead she watches him leave and ignores the pang that splits through her heart.

* * *

On the walk back to his bunk, Jack can't stop thinking about Blondie and surprisingly to him, his mind flashes back to his old girlfriend from high-school. She was smart and feisty. Hard-headed but determined. His first real girlfriend. Someone he loved and someone who left him broken.

The last part wasn't her fault, though. No, it was at his parent's doing.

But, that's all in the past. What's done is done.

 _She's probably got a fancy job. With a fancy boyfriend or a fiancé or a husband_ , he thinks bitterly as he stumbles down the halls. Of course she could be living the happy life, while he's doing all the dirty work. However, their whole relationship wasn't all that bad. They had a lot of good times together. Especially when they disagreed over something.

Their conversations would start off like normal, but then, one or the other would take something the wrong way or misinterpret the context. One of them, or both, would be offended and after arguing for a good amount of time, they would stop fighting and start making out.

All that pent up anger was a turn on for the both of them and whatever they were arguing about was long gone and replaced with a deep need. They would kiss forever and end up wrapped in each others arms.

Jack can't help but smile at the remembrance, but as soon as the smile appears, it disappears. He shakes his head to get rid it, the memory of her and all the happiness he felt all those years ago.

* * *

He know it's not a good sign when every day, for the next week, he's not allowed anywhere near Blondie.

Or the interrogation.

His father sends him to another section for the day or gives him a list of impossible tasks to finish in a day. And every night, when he sneaks into to see her, his heart tightens and his rage boils. It's like every night, she had a new wound that's dark, bloodied and bruised. But tonight, made him feel something he hasn't felt in a long time.

Regret and compassion.

Jack knew the instant he opened the door that something wasn't right and it wasn't going to be pretty. But, he never expected this. Leaning into the wall, Kim had a busted lip and bleeding gash on her right shoulder that she was clutching tight with an equally bloodied hand.

"Blondie, what the hell happened?" Jack mutters, walking over to her and taking a seat close enough to see the damage, but not close enough to be next to her.

"You know exactly what happened," Kim groans weakly, shaking her head.

"Honestly, I don't. I'm not allowed on your case," Jack replies in a fairly calm manner—even though, on the inside, he's freaking out.

"Why?" Kim whispers carefully, her nerves building up like a volcano.

"It's Commander's orders. But, it probably has something to do with my little outburst last week," Jack thinks back to the memory and mumbles something under his breath.

"Little outburst? You practically screamed in the other guards' faces and were about to beat the shit out of them," Kim lightly chuckles but then pauses to add on another thought. "Which by the way, thanks."

"Okay, you may have a point. And what are you thanking me for, Blondie?" Jack probes with a raised eyebrow.

"For a lot of things," Kim waves off, stopping this particular discussion. Jack watches Kim's eyes glance anywhere but him and decides to give her a break and not push the subject further. Besides, there are more important things to deal with right now.

"Who hit you? And what happened to your shoulder?" Jack presses in a serious and concerned tone.

"First off, can I just say that your 'style' of torturing people is fucked up. Unless, I'm a special circumstance. Which I don't know if I should be honored or not," Kim starts to ramble, anger mixing in with fear.

"Blondie, shut it," Jack's snaps through gritted teeth.

"Right, sorry," Kim coughs out. "Okay, so I don't know who hit me. But, he was a tall dude with big muscles and dark black hair. He also had a whole bunch of tattoos down his left arm. Now, regarding my shoulder, apparently I wasn't being 'helpful' enough so, they brought in this whip looking thing. I wasn't about to get my ass kicked so I dodged it. Kind of."

"Of course you did," Jack answers, sighing. "Blondie, when are you going to realize you can't win against us? Stop trying to be a hero and just help us with what we need. Now, I'll be right back."

"What are you going to do? I have a little chat with Da—I mean Commander?" Kim questions with a hint of tension and anxiety.

"No, I'm not going to talk to Commander. At least not yet. Even though I kind of hate your guts right now, I wouldn't rat you out. I am going to get some ointment for that gash and some water to clean you up," Jack counters with a neutral expression as he gets up and leaves.

With the silence back and allowing her a moment to think, Kim wonders of how Jack can easily switch personalities. Last night he was fuming and now, he's actually a little caring. It's moments like this when she just wants to scream out and tell him everything. But, she knows she can't. It won't only be bad for her, but for him as well. Considering they have a lot resentment towards one another. And, as much as she doesn't want to admit it, she misses him, still until this day.

As she's lost in her own world, going back-and-forth, from the past to the present, she suddenly hears heavy footsteps becoming closer and instantly gets back into attack mode. Seconds later, Jack re-enters the cell with a big bowl of water, a washcloth and a tee-shirt.

"Here, you'll need to change into this after I fix your shoulder. Take off your shirt," Jack orders, watching her with an intense stare. Kim bites her tongue, and hesitates slightly but does what she's told as she strips out of the black tee-shirt to reveal her black bra.

Jack tries his absolute hardest not to be a guy and ignore her chest, but can't seem to follow through as the woman in front of him takes his breath away.

All of a sudden, Kim feels shy by the lustful look Jack's giving her, but she savers this moment for a second longer before crossing her arms over her chest to cover up. The action snaps Jack out of his daze as he shakes his head and mumbles an apology that might not of even counted as an apology if it was anyone else but Jack Brewer in front of her. Kim can only nod in return as Jack signals her to retake her seat on the cot so he can get to work.

Cleaning the gash on her shoulder first, Jack hurriedly and carefully covers the opening with the ointment as a stinging sensation lets Kim knows it's working. Jack then takes Kim's old shirt, rips it apart and ties a long, thick piece of material around the wound for protection.

"You can put your shirt back on now." Jack says in a low, deep voice, leaning back onto his heels to give her some space.

Swiftly doing so, Kim doesn't know what to think as she can feel the sexual tension rising between them again. Once she's covered back up, Jack starts to clean her lip as the gentleness he's showing right now takes Kim back to one of her favorite memories.

"Stop looking at me like that," Jack grumbles, trying to keep his cool.

"Like what?" Kim demands, not realizing her actions.

"Never mind," Jack exhales. "What are you thinking about?"

"It's nothing," Kim answers embarrassingly.

"Liar. I can see it in your eyes. You can tell me if you want. I am human after all," Jack mentioned with a small smile.

 _Could have fooled me_ , Kim reflects before trying to play it off, "You wouldn't be interested."

"Try me. I can use some entertainment," Jack retorts, the two falling into a comfortable conversation.

"Okay, fine," Kim finally gives in after a few seconds of silence, knowing this could possibly be her only chance to spark a memory in him. "I was just thinking about my ex-boyfriend and one of my favorite memories is us."

"Ex-boyfriend, huh? What was he like?" Jack inquires with a small ounce of jealousy that he poorly tries to hide.

"Yeah. We dated for over a year until he chose another path to go down. But, he was hard-headed, egotistical and extraordinary. We pushed each other to our breaking points, but also to greatness," Kim shares with a real smile gracing her face for the first time in a long time.

"Sounds like an interesting relationship," Jack smirks as he continues to clean her lip. "So, what was your favorite memory?"

"It was very interesting. We were similar but different at the same time. And my favorite memory is a little personal, but it was when I gave myself to him. It was romantic and sweet. I fell in love with him even more and him with me. He wasn't one to show a lot of emotion, but when we were together, surrounded by candlelight and the winter rain, everything was perfect. He was so gentle and the love we shared wasn't like anything else," Kim recalls, the smile still plastered on her face.

Jack grips the towel tightly as the story hits his heart in an odd way.

It's like he knows the memory too. Which, couldn't be possible. But, the heart never lies. Does it? And, the soft, serene feature of the girl in front of him is making it really hard to distance himself from her. There was something about her that holds his attention. Plain and simple.

Needing to leave as soon as possible before anything foolish can happen, Jack rapidly finishes cleaning her lip and then exits without a word.

Oh, how life is evil sometimes.

Rushing down the hall and to the door that leads outside, Jack pushes it open with so much force it hits the wall as the cool evening air hits him. He doesn't understand what's happening with him and just when he starts to get some peace, an oh-so-familiar voice breaks it. "What are you doing out here, Jackson?" The voice wonders curiously.

"Just getting some air. What does it look like?" Jack sneers, not turning around.

"Watch it, son. You don't want to cross me," his father warns sternly as he walks up next to him.

 _Fuck off_ , Jack thinks himself, but knows better to voice his opinions out loud and decides to ask, "What's going to happen to Blondie if she doesn't give you anything of importance?"

"Who the hell is Blondie?" Erik questions with a raised eyebrow.

"You know, the blonde girl in the cell down the hall," Jack explains, pointing behind him.

"Oh, her," Erik nods. "Well, the same thing that happens everyone else who becomes useless to us. Why do you ask?"

"No reason," Jack shrugs, not wanting to start an argument.

"Somehow, I don't believe you. But, I'm not worried," Erik blows the conversation off. "Just, don't cause any problems, understood?"

"Yes." Jack responds sharply.

"Yes, what?" Erik pushes.

"Yes, sir." Jack repeats, balling his hands into fists at his sides.

His father walks away seconds later and then Jack is joined by Jerry who has a complex expression on his face. "What'd he want?" He whispers.

"Nothing. He's still the old controlling bastard that he's always been," Jack sighs. "Anyways, what's up, Jer?"

"Not much. I just want to see how you were doing," Jerry replies casually.

"That damn girl driving me insane," Jack finds himself saying out loud.

"Who?" Jerry probes with a small grin.

"Blondie. She's _so_. . . she's so sneaky," Jack grunts.

"Sneaky? That's the best you can do?" Jerry laughs.

"Fuck you," Jack complains. "It's like she's intentionally pushing my buttons."

"Girls do that. You can't let them get to you. But, how about you take a break from Blondie and let Taylor take over. I'm sure Blondie will like the female interaction," Jerry suggests.

"Taylor? That girl who stole your food last week?" Jack questions, turning to his friend with a knowing smile that Jerry ignores by looking down at his boots.

"Yeah. I mean I don't really know her but she seemed cool and I just think Blondie would like someone more down to Earth—not that you aren't down to Earth or anything—but uh you know just some calm interaction that doesn't end in sexual tension o-or a fight or something. I don't talk to Taylor though, no way, no how but—you know what you look grumpy and I'm going to shut up."

Jack eyes him for a long moment after Jerry cuts himself short of his own rant before letting it go, not having the energy to argue. "Yeah, fine. Whatever," Jack agrees as the two move onto another topic.

* * *

Two days later after a very unusually calm 'interrogation', Kim is greeted by the first female she's seen since she's been there. "Hi, I'm Taylor," a tall, dark blonde introduces with a friendly smile as she walks into the cell room.

"Hi, I'm Kim. It's nice to meet you," Kim copies with a polite smile.

"You too. Now, I'm not supposed to be here, but I wanted to make sure you were okay," Taylor explains, walking further into the cell.

"How'd you know I'm down here? And, thank you," Kim visibly appreciates the kindness.

"From a, uh, friend of mine. And you're welcome. I know they don't treat women with enough respect over here. You really have to work for it. But a word of advice, don't trust anyone. The men here are heartless. The only one person you can trust is yourself and own instinct." Taylor cautions.

"Okay, I will," Kim nods. "I appreciate your honesty. And if it's not too much of a problem, can I ask you something?"

"Not a problem and of course. Shoot," Taylor urges, her openness a refreshing change.

"Who should I avoid the most?" Kim asks.

Taylor thinks for a second before biting her lip and whispers, "The Brewers, Jack and Commander. They're pretty strict and will kill you in a heartbeat." She seems to think of her response for a moment before backtracking, "Jack's not too bad if you can get him to open up. Or if he's with his friend, Watchtower. But the Commander, the Commander has done some terrible things."

Kim nods, feeling her shoulder injury scream when her other hand unknowingly shifts and falls on-top of the makeshift bandaging. Taylor watches the girl before her carefully, remembering all of what Jerry told her about Kim. "But listen," Taylor cuts through Kim's thoughts with a brave voice, "you're gonna be okay. Watchtower, Vengeance and I are going to make sure you're safe. We'll keep you safe."

Kim scoffs quietly, shaking her head. "Virgo isn't going to keep me safe. He can't wait until I die. Bipolar asshole."

Taylor bites her bottom lip, thinking for a moment before speaking again. "He cares more than you think."

Kim doesn't meet Taylor's eyes and instead decides to stare at her feet as millions of memories from her first, and only, love plague her. One memory in particular takes hold of her as Taylor mumbles something about going to get her a fresh bottle of water before leaving, and Kim barely even notices as she thinks back to her high-school days.

It was prom night and they had wandered off halfway through to take a look at the beautiful hotel that was holding their prom, and each hallway they walked through was amazing and so very pretty. The paintings on the wall were gorgeous and as they found their way to the elevator and Jack hit a random button to take them to a different floor, Kim had turned towards him, a worried look covering her usually calm exterior.

 _Jack_ , she had whispered, tugging him closer to her, taking in the sight of her handsome man all dressed up in a black tuxedo, _I love you and I don't think_ , she had paused then, exhaling worriedly as his calloused fingers rubbed circles into the back of her hand, _I don't think I can face the world without you._

And Kim can remember his answer as clear as day, and the passionate kiss that followed.

 _Oh Princess, don't worry, I don't plan on ever forgetting about you._


	8. Operation Breaking Point

Hello and happy Thursday!

Here is the long, long awaited next chapter! We're sorry it took so long to get up, but life is always taking over. We'll try to update on a more regular basis, but we're not making any promises.

Thank you for your support and reviews!

* * *

Chapter Seven—Operation Breaking Point  
0701 Hours (7:01 am, EST)  
 _Crawford, Kim_

* * *

"Is your father smuggling drugs into the United States?"

"If he is then it's messed up he hasn't hooked me up with any weed."

"Is your father associating with terrorists?"

"I fucking hope not."

"Does your father have any ties in the government working for him?"

"Probably."

"Does your father inherit illegal money?"

"Once again, if he is, it's messed up he hasn't hooked me up."

And the cycle continued for the next two hours. Over and over, repeating and repeating and repeating. Every integration worked like this; Kim would be led to a room with a metal table and wooden chairs, sat down and questioned constantly about her father.

The assholes even tried to bring her mother into it one day, which resulted in one of the three guards on standby gaining a black eye curtesy of her fist. Commander was relentless with his questioning, always trying to trick her into letting something slip. But she was too smart and cautious to fall into one of his traps. She always fought back with taut smiles and blazing eyes.

The entire thing though, Kim thought was hilarious, because honestly, she didn't know anything. She knew little of her father's 'operations'. All she really knew were the simple things.

She knew he dodged paying taxes, and she herself had been roped into assisting him whenever a random bag or stack of money appeared in the backyard and money appeared nearly every other day. She knew he smuggled a bomb into the United States in a plan to blow-up a major airport but part of the information went in one ear and out the other because as soon as her father had heard the price the guy would pay to have that bomb, all he was able to hear and see were coins clanking and dollar signs amassing.

To her knowledge he hadn't worked with any terrorists, yet, but he did have a massive web of people working within the government assisting him with fraud and things like that to get a cut of that same money. To put it in short, her father was a really bad person, which is why she tried to stay as far away from him as possible and talked to him as little as possible.

Timothy Crawford was a crooked man whose only concern in life was getting money on top of money on top of money. Kim was quickly able to figure out the exact reason she was kidnapped was because of him, and because the government was seriously pissed off that they had no solid information on what he was doing.

Their latest discovery was that Timothy was selling weapons to terrorists, which Kim thought was farfetched. Was he really that desperate for more money to help terrorists?

Commander slams a heavy fist down on the table, causing Kim to leave her thoughts and jump in her seat. His eyes were narrowed and his pupils were dark from anger. They had been integrating her for weeks and weeks on end, maybe even months, she didn't know, and she had given them literally nothing.

"If you don't start giving me some answers, sweetheart, I can promise you aren't going to see the light of day again. Or even live to see tomorrow."

Kim can't help but roll her eyes, "I don't know anything. I don't understand why you idiots can't understand that."

She gestures faintly with her cuffed hands, when in secret it's just her finally getting the lock jimmied and unlocked. The cuff instantly loosens and she does her best not to smile as Commander stands up in his seat and stalks over to her side.

"I am _sick_ of playing games Crawford—"

Before he has time to even finish his sentence, Kim is up and moving, grabbing him by the arm and using all of her weight to swing him over her shoulder and to the ground. He's caught so off-guard he's still on the ground for a few pressing seconds, which is enough time for Kim to power through the three other guards in the room and then get out the door.

The guards act just as dazed as Commander for a minute, two struggling to stand up from being knocked to the ground and the third helping Commander sit-up from the ground. Commander shoves the guard's hands off him, voice a near growl of anger when he yells at him.

"Get the fucking girl! Get after her! We cannot have her escape!"

The guard recoils and scurries backwards, running out the door with the two other guards following behind him, pistols at the ready. Commander stands up with a grunt, hand over his heart as his racing heartbeat refuses to settle.

He finds himself leaning all of his weight against the metal table, partly slumped over, eyes slipping shut. His heart continues to pound and pound, the mixture of shock and anger thrashing through his veins. There's also a hint of fear there too, because if the girl escapes then all he's been working for is gone, then all his reputation is gone, then it's the government down his throat and shutting it all _down_ —

"Sir! Sir, are you okay?"

A hand grips his shoulder tightly, another at his wrist. Both help him stand upright and he groans lowly, pain shooting through his chest, his arm.

"Sir?" The voice says again, shaking his shoulder.

Another hand grabs at his elbow, and Commander's afraid the only things keeping him standing up are the three pairs of hands on him. He has trouble getting his eyes open, and even more getting them to stay open.

He has a small idea of what's happening to him; from the shock of Crawford escaping, from the anger of getting nowhere in this whole ordeal with her, the anger with his son acting strangely whenever he's anywhere around the damn girl, and the little bits of fear circling him if this whole operation fails and he doesn't get any answers.

And all those things mixed together, all those damn things swirling around his brain at the same time, it's enough to cause pain, and _dammit_ his heartbeat still won't _slow down_.

When he's finally able to get his vision to adjust so he can see the soldiers in front and around him, the pain increases tenfold and he feels himself falling away.

 _Heart attack_ , his brain thinks shoddily, fears escalating, _you're having a goddamn heart attack Erik_.

He nearly wants to curse out loud at the realization but finds that he can't, finds that his mouth doesn't want to open, that his tongue feels like lead and doesn't want to move. And even with the five guards surrounding him in the room, three of them holding him up, the Commander finds himself falling down, hitting the ground with a deafening _smack_ as skin hits pavement.

The guards surround him like a hurricane, lifting his arms, checking his heartbeat, slapping his cheeks a little. "Call the medic!" A different gruff voice calls out to somebody, "He's having a heart attack!"

Commander's last fading thought as the darkness engulfs him is, _find the fucking girl or else I'm killing you all_ , and that's quite morbid even for a dying man but he thinks it anyway.

* * *

Kim runs.

She runs like her life is depending on it, which is realistically true.

She weaves around corners, dodges security cameras and takes out two groups of patrolling guards along her way to . . . to wherever she's going. Pushing that thought away, she keeps running. As she whips around a corner, she slams into somebody's chest dead-on.

Her heart freezes and her body goes rigid as she falls to the ground from the force, and she hears the person she ran into hit the ground too. She pushes her body as far backwards as she can, but her back hits a wall and there's nowhere else to go.

Panic bubbles in her chest as the person stands up faster than she can and approaches her and Kim prepares her body for the bullet she's about to receive but hears no gunshot goes off. She lifts her eyesight upwards and nearly breathes a sigh of relief when she sees Watchtower's confused face in front of her.

He holds out a hand, saying nothing as she takes it and he tugs her up to a standing position.

She's never talked to the guy, but he's always hovering around Jack, and she has an inkling that they're best friends. She hopes that's enough for him not to grab her and turn her in. To her surprise, instead of putting a knife to her throat like a part of her brain thought he would, he lets go of her hand and stares at her in bewilderment.

She eyes the butt of the revolver sticking out from the waistband of his combat pants and also takes notice to the machete hooked to his back. He sees her eye up his weapons and fights the urge to laugh, but knows it's definitely not the time for that. He's still trying to get over the fact that this girl, Kim he reminds himself, is freely roaming the halls.

She didn't escape . . . did she?

"Did you, are you," he pauses, skipping over different ways to phrase what he's trying to say in his head, "did you escape, blondie?" She doesn't even bother to acknowledge the nickname, too busy turning her head behind her when she hears footsteps approaching.

"Kinda. Yeah. From that jackass Commander. There also may be a few guys coming after me like, oh I don't know, right about now."

Watchtower's eyes widen considerably and she sees him take out the revolver from his pants and spin it so it's loaded. Then he raises it, and her heart stops because _God he's going to shoot me_. Instead he aims it past her head just in time for three guards to round the corner.

Watchtower fires off three shots and each hits their target, one bullet embedding itself in the first guard's head, another into the second guard's heart and the third bullet hitting the final guard in the neck.

The three fall to the ground in a heap of limbs and Kim gapes at the scene for a moment before Watchtower grabs her by the hand and starts to lead her away. Watchtower can't help but smirk at her poorly hidden impressed expression as he leads her through multiple different hallways. He only turns and comments when they reach a door at the end of a hallway that leads to a staircase leading downwards.

He smiles as he types in a four-digit-code on the keypad of the door, holding it open for her.

"They don't call me Watchtower for no reason. Best goddamn aim here, baby. Could've been one of the best sharpshooters out there if I didn't choose the 'hacker' path instead. Real name is Jerry by the way, Jerry Martinez. Vengeance's—Jack's—best friend."

She connects the dots easily in her brain. Vengeance is Jack and Watchtower is Jerry which means she was right about the two being friends. Thank God.

"I hate all the codename bullshit. Anyway, we gotta move. Now that I'm technically a double agent or what-fucking-ever. I have a place where you can hide for a while. These stairs lead downstairs to the basement and there's a room that's pretty well hidden down there."

Kim hesitates, knowing they need to get moving because she doesn't know how many people are on them or if anyone saw Jerry shoot those guys, but she finds her feet refuse to move without her asking what's on her mind first. "Why are you helping me? Why did you shoot those guys?"

Jerry smirks, holding the door open wider.

"I'm helping you because I can and I shot them because I can't have anyone see me helping you, now, can I?"

Kim says nothing else as she starts to make her way down the stairs, Jerry following behind her. He whispers directions to her when they get to the bottom and points her the right way until they get to a door that's protected by nothing at all and Kim nearly rolls her eyes. Jerry acts like he reads her mind as she opens the door, "Protection is all on the inside, blondie."

They both enter the room and Jerry shuts and locks the door behind them before flipping on the light. It's a small room that holds a cot in the right corner and a double screen computer in the left. There's an AK-47 against the wall next to the computer and a MP5 laying on the floor beneath it. A half drank water bottle is on top of the desk that holds the computer and an empty bag of chips is under the desk on the floor.

An advanced keypad hangs on the wall next to the door which Kim takes as the protection Jerry was talking about.

"Your secret base in this place?" Kim questions Jerry, the latter shrugging as he takes a seat in the desk chair and starts up the computer. He spins towards her as she takes a gander over to the cot and takes a seat on the edge of it.

"You could call it that. It's my little getaway place. I come here to get away from all the bad shit I do on a daily basis." Kim says nothing, directing her eyes down to the floor. Jerry spins back towards the computer as it loads up and he logs in, placing his revolver on the desk while the computer signs him in.

A few minutes pass where they don't talk to each other and the only sounds in the room is the crappy air conditioner struggling to stay alive from the vent in the ceiling. It clanks and stutters endlessly and Kim decides to focus on the keyboard keys clicking, the work of Jerry, instead. He disrupts the almost-silence after a few more loud clicks.

"No trace of me shooting those guys on the security cams, and I deleted the evidence of you running into me on that one corner. So now it just looks like you escaped and maybe, just maybe, killed those guards on your way out. Unless those jackasses think of some other bullshit reason as to why they died. Depends, you know?"

Kim nods, running a hand through her wild hair.

Jerry watches her for a minute, studying her. No wonder Jack's taken a liking to her. The girl's got balls, and is quite hot at that. Not that he cares though, he's quite smitten with Taylor at the moment. Taylor's all he could ever ask for. Jerry clears his throat, Kim barely moving at the action.

"Do you want me to get Jack?"

Kim's head snaps up to face Jerry and he feels like he's about to get yelled at from the hard glare that enters her eyes. "Why would I want him?" She barks, Jerry flinching a bit at her tone. He holds his hands up in surrender, trying to portray to her that he's just trying to help her.

"Hey, hey. Chill, chill. I just . . . he cares about you. He cares about what happens to you. Though he might not show it very well." Kim scoffs, though on the inside her heart aches.

He's still Jack. He might be different, but he's still the man she fell in love with, and the man who . . . who loved her back. She doesn't want to ever admit it, but she just really wants to hug him or just touch him in anyway. Not a fleeting touch and a meet of the eyes, no, she wants something more. Something she'll never get ever again because _he's not the same man you fell in love with_ , her brain reasons, shooing her thought process away.

Jerry turns back to the computer, idly typing in other things to check within the base.

He's equally surprised and not surprised at all when a small, "Hey," comes from where Kim's sitting. Jerry turns towards her, seeing a glassy hue to her eyes but saying nothing of it. "Can you get . . . "

She trails off but Jerry knows what she's saying before she even finishes. He stands up and heads towards the door, smiling at her. "Yeah. I can." He replies quietly, "Don't let anyone in. I'll be back with him in five, okay?"

Kim nods, "Okay." He unlocks and opens the door but Kim stops him. "Jerry?"

He doesn't bother turning around but halts in the doorway. "Yeah?"

"Thank you."

His lips twitch upwards again. "Yeah. Of course."

* * *

"Princess?"

There would be a tone of desperation to his voice, a tone of _please tell me you're okay_ if he didn't keep his voice so gruff, but he did and as soon as Kim sees him she wants to hug him. She nearly does as he enters the room, but instead holds the urge back and keeps her arms at her sides as he closes the door behind him.

Her voice actually fails her as she tries to ask where Jerry is and Jack looks at her funny.

"Blondie? You okay?" His voice stays cool and calculated and that hurts Kim's heart a bit. Getting the words to leave her mouth is a struggled but she manages to do it anyway.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine I just . . . sorry." Jack's eyes seem to scan her for any injuries as he looks at her and Kim fidgets under his intense stare. "I escaped." The words escape her mouth without her permission and Jack exhales, face suddenly turning hard again.

"Yeah. Jerry filled me in on the way. To be honest, princess, you shouldn't have. You would've been safer not escaping. I don't . . . I don't know how I can—"

 _Protect you._

"—keep an eye on you now."

Kim doesn't back down. "I rather live my life in hiding right now than get tortured every day."

Jack seems to flinch at her retort but hides it well. He crosses his arms, exhaling. "What're we gonna do with you now, blondie?" There's a small pull to his lips but Kim doesn't know if it's a smile or not.

"I don't know. Get me the fuck out of here?"

Meanwhile, outside the room, Jerry and Taylor are talking to each other quietly about everything that's happened so far. Taylor is holding one of his hands, Jerry's other hand gripping her hip gently. "I can't believe she escaped," Taylor quietly muses, Jerry smiling weakly.

"I don't know how she managed it either but she did and now I've gone and screwed myself over for her, for Jack."

Taylor shakes her head, "I would've done the same damn thing. No one saw you Jerry, so no one knows what you did besides the four of us. You're safe, okay?" He leans his forehead against hers, noses brushing together.

"Okay, okay," he breathes, Taylor giving him a quick kiss on the lips.

Before they can say anything else, however, they hear footsteps thundering towards them. Jerry and Taylor let go of each other faster than lightning, both standing up straight and acting like they're on guard just as a group of soldiers approach from the left hallway. Jerry greets them with a tilt of the head and one of the guards on the right speaks before Jerry can.

"There's been a major security breach. Three men are dead and a high value target as escaped. We need to check every room. Move please." There's no friendliness to his voice, just a determined air about him. Jerry feels Taylor's hand grip the back hem of his shirt in alarm and Jerry gulps soundlessly.

"This room? This is just my hangout for when I need some alone time you know what I'm talking about?" He laughs but the laughter dies out when the guard doesn't go for his joke but instead takes a step closer to Jerry.

"Move. Aside."

Jerry continues to stall, "W-What about the other levels of the base—"

Another guard pipes up with an answer, "There are around five different groups investigating each floor. This is our next stop."

Jerry feels hopeless. There's nothing he can do. Jack and Kim are going to get caught and they're all going to get shot and die. Taylor's grip on his shirt tightens as the leader of the group holds up his automatic gun to Jerry's face.

"Move. Now. Unless you got something to hide."

Jerry has no other choice but to move out of the way and as the guards rush the door, Taylor's grip moves down to his hand and he squeezes tight, hoping he didn't just put his best friend to death.


	9. Operation Redemption

~Author's Note~

Hey guys! So bear with me, because this AN may be a little long. Thank you all for the reviews, and thank you for sticking with us. The continued support means everything to us. The delayed update with last chapter was all on me as I had to take an impromptu break from for a while because of some serious family issues which then turned into me not actually being able to write for a while. But I'm back and things are slowly getting back on track.

Now, to answer some reviews.

 _TashaLove689_ —Yes the story was on delay for a few months, sorry about that. We are going to try and get the updates more frequent. :)

 _XxTheYinToYourYangxX_ —Thank you for your reviews and thank you for sticking up to those spammers. What you said is nice compared to what I'm about to say . . .

 **Spammer(s)—**  
Seven reviews, huh? Really? Seven? Thanks again for bumping our review count! Whoo! Getting to 100 is gonna be a piece of freaking cake if you keep this up. Though I doubt it's multiple people, honestly. I believe it's one person attempting to be a troll and getting nowhere. All you want is a reaction right? A freak out? Sorry, hate to kill your dreams but you're not getting one. Missy and I have been on for a long while and this stuff you're saying and doing isn't going to faze us. Grow up. Oh, and are you also the same spammer from when I was writing Night Light? I went back and checked. Somebody spammed one of my chapters on that story saying how it should be deleted because it was 'sad' and now someone is spamming this story because it 'took too long to update'?

Stop acting childish and trying to cause an uproar. It isn't working.  
 _Don't like the story, don't read it._  
That's that.

Alright guys, I'm done talking. Had to put that spammer in their place, again. Bullshit, am I right? I hope everyone enjoys the chapter and please feel free to leave a review if you liked.

Oh and guys; who said Erik was dead? ;)

* * *

Chapter Eight—Operation Redemption  
0859 Hours (8:59 am, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

* * *

The door quickly swings open as two guards rush inside only to stop immediately in their tracks in the doorway.

"Vengeance? What are you doing down here?" A guard named Jail Breaker, for obvious reasons, questions as he lowers his gun.

"I'm down here more than you know. This room is considered Watchtower's place to relax and right now, I can use some peace and quiet," Jack answers calmly but with an edge of hostility, needing to keep things as normal as possible.

"Understandable, sir, but we have a problem. Well, two to be exact," Jail Breaker continues, shifting from side to side.

"Problems? What kind of problems?" Jack inquires darkly with raised eyebrows as he crosses his arms over his chest.

"Um, well you see, the prisoner escaped during the interrogation with Commander and Commander is getting driven to Medical Station down the road," Jail Breaker shares looking at Jack's stern, evil glare and then focusing on the wall behind the younger man and keeping a straight face.

"Commander is going to medical? What the hell happened?" Jack barks, tension rising between the two as he feels a sudden chill run down his spine.

"We don't know for certain, sir. It'd be best if you went down there to find out. And what do you want us to do about the prisoner?" Jail Breaker probes, turning back to his more serious stance.

As Jack hears everything, he doesn't know what to think at the moment. Something bad must have happened for Commander to go to medical. That son of a bitch got what was coming to him. But the unknown feeling left him uneasy. And then there was Blondie. Still causing trouble. He was both amused and pissed at her actions and knew she was only getting started.

Deciding to face the biggest problem first, he stands up straight, gives Jail Breaker a nod of thanks and then motioning him to exit the room as they both walk towards the door. Once everyone is outside the closed door, Jack turns to Jail Breaker and orders, "Continue the search for the prisoner on the upper levels and outside. She could have snuck out one of the side doors and can be anywhere by now," and the men nod and then turn around to run down the hall.

Finally being alone, Jack then swiftly faces his friend and mumbles, "Jer, you know what to do."

"Don't worry about her, J. Go. See Commander and figure out the next step," Jerry voices as he gives Jack a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"Thanks," Jack grunts as he walks away from the three and suddenly feels extra weight on his shoulders.

A few minutes pass when Jerry and Taylor decide to get back to work.

"Is he going to okay?" Taylor asks Jerry as he's about to re-enter his 'hideout'.

"Honestly, who knows at this point? He's strong, but still human. We'll just have to wait and see," Jerry replies unhappily.

"Wait and see," Taylor echoes, giving Jerry a small smile. "Go do whatever you're supposed to do. I'll stay down here with her."

"You sure?" Jerry utters with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I highly doubt she'll attack me. And besides, you have a job to do and it'll look really suspicious if you're not up there and in the action," Taylor states, pointing above them to the upper level.

"Fine. But, I'll be back soon," Jerry promises as he gives Taylor a quick peck on the lips before running down the hall.

Taylor watches him leave and then slides inside to see Kim pacing back and forth.

"What's happening?" Kim demands when she hears the door lock.

"Nothing yet. Vengeance and Watchtower have a few things to take care of first. You're pretty lucky, Kim," Taylor admits because if Kim ran into anyone else, she and maybe Jerry would be dead.

"Lucky?" Kim repeats with a sarcastic laugh. "Luck hasn't been on my side for years."

* * *

Hopping out his dark sedan, Jack races through the doors of the Medical Station as nurses and doctors are on the constant move. Pushing his way to the small counter in the center of the room, he orders, "Where's Commander?" in a loud booming voice.

"Excuse me?" The older gentleman sitting at the desk questions, staring blankly at Jack.

"Commander. He was brought in, I don't know, ten, maybe fifteen minutes ago," Jack responds, his patience wearing thin.

"Commander who?" The gentleman requests, looking through the files in front of him. "There is more than one Commander here, son."

"Commander Brewer of the Spike Team and the only commander on this base," Jack tells the guy in an authoritative tone.

"Brewer? Brewer . . . ah, yes. Follow me," the gentleman replies softly, leading Jack away for the hustle and bustle. With each step, Jack feels uncomfortable and a tense, disturbed feeling in the pit of his stomach.

 _This is it_ , he thinks bitterly. _Karma finally caught up to the bastard._

He keeps thinking horrible thoughts as it's not the nicest thing, but hey, can you blame him? His father was evil and cruel and—what the fuck, _still_ alive?

The gentleman had opened the door while he was having a conversation with himself and low and behold, the old man is still living and breathing. It's a complete shock to Jack's system and _dammit_ , curse him. He's like a cockroach. They never die!

"Irresponsible wishful thinking."

Jack complains under his breath as the gentleman quickly murmurs, "I'll give you two some privacy."

"Damn right you will!" Commander shouts, shifting in the small hospital bed.

"Thank you." Jack groans at his father's temperament as the gentleman nods and closes the door behind him.

"Took you long enough to get here, Jackson," Commander criticizes with a stern glare. "Did you find the girl?"

"No, not yet. Everyone is searching and we sent a team out to cover the land outside of Base," Jack answers simply staring at his father. "What happened?"

"Then why are you here? You need to find her damn it!" Commander barks angrily. "And they say heart attack, but who the fuck knows. Everyone here is a moron. Now, go! Leave me alone and find the bitch. You know what you have to do."

"Whatever you say," Jack hisses as he sends a nod to his grumpy-ass father and leaves the room.

On the drive back to Base, he knows he has a few options. To obey his father and give up Blondie. Or, use Blondie to figure out his father's plan. Both were risky and either choice had very strong consequences. Was he willing to do that? Maybe. Just maybe.

* * *

After arriving back at base, he's exhausted, conflicted and irritated. He wants to somehow work both sides and all he needs is time. Time to come up with a decent plan because after all, while Commander is recuperating, he's now in charge. And it's time to do things his way.

He's walking towards the building, needing to talk with Jerry when he hears a group of men returning from the search.

"Status?" He questions when the group is close enough to hear him.

"Negative, sir. The prisoner is nowhere to be found," one soldier replies, unhooking his gun form the strap.

"Don't worry about the prisoner. She'll show up eventually because she won't be able to survive out there. Call it a night and start back up tomorrow," Jack suggests as he can see the fatigue on everyone's faces.

"Sir? Is Commander all right?" Another member inquires.

"He's fine. Nothing to be concerned about. He'll be resting for a little bit, so until he's back in commission, I'm in charge," Jack proclaims firmly.

"Yes, sir," everyone choruses and nods.

"You're excused. Get rest," Jack returns their nods as they go their separate ways.

Once he's sure he's alone, he sneaks back down to Jerry's room, needing to get a plan in motion. Tonight if possible. Knocking twice before letting himself in, Jack sees Jerry, Taylor and Blondie seated around the room as it is complete silence.

"What's happening?" Kim questions to Jack as soon as she sees him in the doorway.

"Don't know yet. Sit down and shut up for a second, got it?" Jack sneers as he rubs his forehead before facing Jerry.

"How'd everything go?" He wonders curiously.

"Fine. We all searched for her and no one questioned the plan," Jerry answers causally as he gives a quick shrug of the shoulders.

"How's Commander?" Taylor joins the conversation as they should just talk about it now and get it over with.

"He's alive. Small heart attack apparently," Jack shares with no emotions.

"He had a heart attack? Who knew the old guy had a heart?" Jerry jokes as Jack and Taylor can't help but laugh and chuckle as the surprise comment.

"Watchtower, that's a mean thing to say," Taylor warns, trying to control her laughter.

"Too soon?" Jerry presses with a guilty smile.

"It's whatever, bro. We all know how he is," Jack waves it off, not caring at the comment as there is some small truth behind it. "But, he's not our concern right now. We have _her_ to deal with and we're going to have to play it smart if this is going to work out," he says as he points his thumb in Kim's direction.

"If what's going to work out?" She yells from the wall she's leaning on.

"This whole thing!" Jack screams, throwing his hands up in the air. "Commander wants information from you and we obviously know that you want to live and escape. So, the only way everyone gets what they want is if we have a secure plan intact that doesn't get us killed."

"Damn right I want to live. I was captured for unknown reasons for fuck sakes. I don't know what Commander wants and I tell him that. Over and over again," Kim cries out.

"We gathered that much if you're still alive. He thinks you're hiding something. Something majorly important. And there has to be something he needs if he's keeping you with us this long," Jerry adds in a rather gentle tone, his eye softening at her flustered and scared state.

"I honestly don't know what he wants," Kim sighs, running her hands down her face.

"We know that too," Taylor agrees with her, also giving her a small, friendly smile.

"Which is why we need a solid, no fail plan. I'm going to figure this all out and in the end, I hope we all get what we want." Jack remarks as he starts pacing the room.

Silence. Heavy silence fills the room as the four try to get out of this mess. Long, almost painful minutes pass before Jerry jumps and start typing something into the small computer, bringing the screen to life. A grid appears and as Jerry moves the mouse around, trying to find something, Jack walks over to him and questions, "What are you doing, Watchtower? Now's not the time to play some stupid video game."

"It's not a video game, dumbass. Give me a second," Jerry snarls as he continues to search, stare and type on the keyboard.

"What is that?" Taylor wonders curiously, standing on the other side of Jerry.

"That my sexy mamacita, is where Blondie will go," Jerry announces proudly.

"But there's nothing there," Jack points out sharply, not having time for Jerry's games.

"Exactly!" Jerry smirks. "Do you see that small square?" He says as he points to a darker shade of black on the screen. "That's actually an underground bunker. It hasn't been used in a while and it will be the perfect place to hide her. No one knows about it and it'll be undetectable."

"If no one knows about it, how do you know about it?" Kim suddenly joins the conversation with the raised eyebrow.

"Because I know the land. I actually forgot about it, but thank God for this map," Jerry responds, looking at everyone.

"Okay, so we take her there for now. Get up, Blondie. It's time to go," Jack orders as Jerry and Taylor grab their guns, other weapons and supplies.

"You expect me to live underground? For how long?" Kim inquires with disgust as she crosses her arms over her chest, challenging Jack.

Oh how she knows he hates to be questioned and challenged.

"If you want to live, suck it up. And time? Who the fuck knows. I mean, I can leave you down here to get caught if you continue piss me off. Now, let's go. We don't have a lot of time," Jack instructs harshly.

Kim moans in dissatisfaction, but agrees as in minutes, they're sprinting down the halls and slipping out through one of the side doors. Once outside, the four take off running across the land and get further and further away from Base. After running for what feels like more than a mile or two, Jerry start searching for something as his flashlight starts scanning the ground.

"Is that light really necessary? You'll give our location up," Jack growls at Jerry.

"Calm your shit down. I need to find a latch," Jerry grumbles as he walks around from one side to the next.

Jack starts stomping around until he hits something hard. "Got it!" he shares as Jerry rushes over and drops to his knees. He finds the small coin-like latch and hooks a hanger-like object to open the door.

"Come on!" Jerry squeals as he walks down the darkened staircase.

Taylor follows right behind him with Kim behind her and Jack rounding out the back to close the door behind them. They hear Jerry running into things and making a lot of noise before finding light switch as the room is suddenly lightly illuminated.

"I guess the wiring from Base still gives this place energy and power," Jerry states, taking in the area that has a counter-top, bed and a few crates with random supplies.

"All right. Enjoy Princess," Jack smirks, enjoying the fact that this place is worse than the cell they we're holding her in.

"Oh, screw you, Jack!" Kim sneers as she doesn't even realize what she just said as she too blinded by anger.

Gasps of shock are heard from the other two as Jack questions in a deep, menacing voice, "What did you just say?" advancing towards her. Wide eyed and confused, Kim thinks back to her previous comment and within seconds, realization hits her like a ton of bricks. But this was her opening and she was going to take full advantage of it.

"I said, screw you Jack," she repeats without hesitation as she's bracing herself as it's happening.

Right here. Right now.

"How do you know my name?" Jack demands now standing mere feet away for her.

"Jerry told me for one but I knew before that, Jack." Kim slowly reaches out, not completely sure of how he'll react, but tenderly places her hand on Jack's cheek and whispers, "Look at me. Really see me."

Jack stares into the soft brown eyes and feels a certain warmth fill his body. It was comfortable, gentle and real. So incredibly real it actually scares him. He feels somehow connected to the blonde girl in front of him as she lovingly caresses his cheek.

As her hand continues to stays on his cheek, memories flood back to him like a strong wave crashing down and instinctively, he hurriedly jumps back in shock and confusion.

"No. No, this can't be real. This can't be happening," Jack says over and over again, shaking his head and closing his eyes tightly, trying to get rid of the new impending thoughts.

"What's going on, man? Are you okay?" Jerry inquires with worry as his friend's face turns very pale.

"No, I'm not okay. Give me second, Jer." Jack howls loudly, his hands balling into fists. "This is some sick, twisted joke, isn't it? Who the hell put you up to this?"

"This isn't a joke. This is real. I'm here and whether you like it or not, we're going to have to talk. This whole situation is fucked up in more ways than one," Kim calmly replies as she can see the wheels turning in his mind.

"You got one thing right. We're all fucked. And if you're really her, tell me something only she would know?" Jack pushes, wanting and needing the truth to come out once and for all.

"Okay. You have a tattoo of a soldier on your left hip bone and sent the bill to my house so you wouldn't get in trouble. We dated for almost a year until life got in the way and choices were made. And we loved each other more than we thought was possible considering our complicated lives." Kim mentions with different emotions, ranging from hurt, anger and love.

"Okay. So you made your point. I'm surprised to see you again, Kim. It's been a while. But nothing's going to change. All that was in the past. We were young, idiotic. We didn't know about the real world and what would happen. But we know things now and we both have jobs to do," Jack grumbles, feeling a strange pain in his chest and like _he can't breathe_ for a moment.

She studies his emotionless face, let's out a small sigh and speaks, "That may be, but I know you."

He scoffs bitterly at the words, "You know a different me."

"You're still you," she reminds him, tentatively taking a step closer to his stoic body.

"No, I'm not. I lost who I was a long time ago. I lost myself when I lost you," he admits truthfully, feeling his wall slowly starting to crumble at the sight her rosy cheeks and tender eyes staring at him with nothing but openness and a willingness to listen.

"You didn't lose me Jack. Not truly. Because if you loved me, honestly loved me the way I think you did, I was always with you. Just not the way you imagined. I know we had obstacles. So many we couldn't fight that ultimately changed our paths. I know the pressure you were under and the pressure you still carry with you considering you're still working with your father. But I also see your soft side. The side of you who wants to do the right thing. I know and understand the dilemma you're in right now and I know I can't change your plans, but I think you should take this time to think everything through. Is this something you want to do? Or are you still following Commander's orders and stuck in a cycle?" Kim voices with seriousness and truth as she reaches out to caress his cheek again.

"Jack, don't listen to her. She's trying to play you," Jerry suddenly calls out from the side wall as he and Taylor just witnessed all of that. Jerry doesn't trust this whole situation at all. It's too uncanny.

"No, she's not," Jack finds himself answering quickly as Kim closes her mouth, being answered for already.

"How do you know that? You don't even know her!" Jerry tries to reason with his friend.

"I do know her, Jer. I know her well enough to know that she was captured for more than information. It's a dig at me. A message letting me know who's exactly in charge. There's so much more to this," Jack responds, looking at his best friend with a stern face and then at the girl who stole his heart all those years ago. Who still may have his heart?

"You're shitting me, right?" Jerry laughs, not believing what he's hearing. "Who is she then? And why is she so 'important'?"

"No, he's probably right about this. We have history. A lot of history and I guess it's time I introduce myself. I'm Kim, Kim Crawford" Kim announces in a monotone voice to Jerry and then faces her ex with a raised eyebrow. "So, what are you going to do about it, Jack? The ball's in your court."


	10. Operation Leverage

Author's Note:

Hi everyone! Miss us?

We are so very sorry for the delay, but life gets in the way sometimes. We will try to update on a more timely manner, but we can't promise anything. AND, you don't have to worry because even if we are gone for long periods of time, WE WILL come back and finish this. We love this just as much as you guys do. We truly appreciate all your reviews and support. Thank you. Thank you so much!

 **Warnings:** Sensitive material down below. Proceed with caution. Also just so everyone knows and understands this—this story _does not reflect_ Missy's or my opinions about anything. I know the world's sensitive these days but it's a story that's fiction. Alright? Good. Another warning for lots of heavy language.

 **Notes:** Just to clear some things up…  
 **#1:** It was eight am in the start of last chapter and then by the time they hid Kim it was five pm, and now it's nearing seven pm and no one has seen Jack on base since six pm.  
 **#2:** I'm also changing the rules with the hospital a little bit—so it's on the base but through the windows on the outside you can see civilians.  
 **#3:** I made up Taylor's last name because I don't believe they gave her one in the series. (Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.)

 **Finally, #4:**

Jack will be acting weird towards the end of the chapter when certain...things...happen. You guys should be able to figure out why but if not it's because he's unsure. He wants it, he wants it more than anything else in his life, but he's worried and scared and knows that protecting somebody is damn near impossible on the base. So the moment might seem a little less heartfelt from Jack's part and that's on purpose because he's still not sure—even if everything else says otherwise.

* * *

Chapter Nine—Operation Leverage  
1837 Hours (6:37 pm, EST)  
 _Brewer, Erik_

* * *

"So you're saying you know where she is?"

Erik stays silent, letting the tension thicken. The man on the other end of the line shifts in his seat, not uncomfortable, but not calm, either. Something rustles in the background, static scratching at Erik's ears. He doesn't flinch, instead glancing up at his second-in-command and nodding. The older man exits the room as quietly as possible just as the man Erik's talking to finally gives in.

"Did you hear me, Erik?"

"I'm not saying anything," Erik responds just as fast, rolling his shoulders to get rid of the crick in his neck.

"You're saying something." The phone call was a last resort, but Erik was an impatient man and his most valuable asset was lost, so why not go right to the source of it all? "Was your organization the one that kidnapped her?" Timothy Crawford asks, keeping his voice neutral and straight to the point.

Erik laughs, clutching the burner phone tighter, holding it closer to his ear. The laugh is more of a humorous growl. "I've got a question for you, Tim." Erik voices, as a nurse comes in to check his vitals. She minds her own business as she checks him over and then slowly starts to unhook him from the IV and EKG monitor. "How well do you know your own daughter?"

Timothy says quiet for a minute, tapping his fingers irritably against his wooden desk as he waits for the confirmation email to appear on his computer. "She's my daughter," he says determinedly as he receives an answer, and a smile curves his lips.

 _Tracing the call now.  
-RG_

"I know her like the back of my hand."

The nurse finishes up, gives him a nod of approval and exits the room. Erik stands, stretching, already dressed for work. The light green muscle-tee moves with him, and the dog tags around his neck jingle as he walks over to the window. "That's a bold answer, isn't it?" Using his other hand, he brushes invisible dirt from his brown cargo pants and then sticks it in his pants pocket.

"Not when it's my daughter's life at stake."

Erik hums, his eyes following a couple across the sidewalk, the two holding a paper bag filled with French fries between them. The Circus Burger logo is distorted from the grease. "What do you know about her past boyfriends?"

Timothy stops tapping his fingers. His office creaks as wind brushes against the house, the wind chime his wife placed out back a few years ago whistling. His email inbox stays empty. "She's had a few. One in fifth grade—who doesn't count, if you ask her about it—two in middle school, and I think one in high school. All big, tough, and broody. All gone, now."

An older woman, who at least has to be in her late sixties, walks her black German Shepard by a leash, and he politely sticks by her side, not bothering to bark at any passerby. "And the one in high school?" Timothy doesn't answer right away.

"Why do you need to know any of this?"

Erik exhales, smirking. "Let's just say morbid curiosity."

Timothy tenses and his phone feels heavy in his palm all of a sudden. "The one in high school lasted a while. Polite, protective, took her to prom, always checked in on her. I can't for the life of me remember his name." Erik turns away from the window when he hears the door open as his second-in-command enters, and his smirk turns into a full-blown smile.

"My son's too good of a man. He has a good heart, like his mother, and that's his downfall. He's never willing to go all the way. He's a tough son of a bitch for sure, but there's always something holding him back. My organization . . . we're ruthless. You've heard of some of our successful missions?" Erik pitches it as a question, but it's more of a statement because of course Timothy knew of his organization and the dirty missions they completed on a daily basis.

Their completed 'missions' were gruesome and disgusting and _wrong_ , to say the least. The fact that the government hired them to do some of their bidding unnerved him a little too much. They _were_ ruthless, and death followed them like their own shadow. "Yes."

"Good, good. Jack—he's always tried just a little too hard to fit in. It was obvious he couldn't ever do what was asked of him and he tried too hard to be, cliché as it sounds, bad. When his mother died, things got bad, but I whipped him into shape." Erik pauses for effect. "But then Kim came along."

Timothy tries to stay unruffled, "The government hired you to kidnap her."

"Of course. Rumors are that you're dealing to terrorists, Tim. What American does that?" His tone becomes disgusted towards the end and Timothy stays still. "I'll gladly cut up anyone who wants another nine-eleven to happen."

"You—"

"Actually," Erik draws, "I would gladly kill anyone who associates with them."

"It was once!" Timothy growls abruptly, " _Once_. A bomb. Nothing ever happened with it. The payout was gigantic. Whatever the government's saying now, it's not true." Erik ignores him and goes back to his previous subject, expression becoming impersonal again.

"My son's name is Jack Brewer—"

Timothy's eyes widen, "That's the name. That's who she dated."

"—and yes. My son and your daughter were high school loves or some shit." Erik's voice grows angry and Timothy grows worried. "I know what you're doing. You have a week to turn yourself in. If you give yourself up, she might come back to you in one piece. If you even get to see her before you're locked up for life."

"Erik we can work something out just don't h—"

His second-in-command tosses him a pair of dog tags to confirm that he has who Erik wants under lock-and-key. Tim goes to say something else, something more, something to get his daughter out of Erik's clutches but before the words can escape his mouth an email appears in his inbox. He glances up at his computer at the same time Erik smiles.

 _Trace failed. Abort.  
-RG_

"Nice try, Tim, but your time is up."

Erik hangs up the call and passes the phone to his second-in-command, code-named Bull. Bull takes the burner phone and props it against the wall, and then pulls out a silenced pistol and shoots it until the screen's disintegrated and sparks pop out. Then he picks it back up and tucks it in his pocket, so he can quickly dispose of it once they pass a trashcan or something of the like.

Erik sighs as he glances back at his hospital bed and then at Bull. "Any idea where she is?"

"No, sir."

"But the package is secured?"

"Yes, sir."

"And my son?"

The burly man hesitates, "No one has seen him on base since 1700 hours."

"An hour away from base? He's with the girl. Send a squad to get him and secure his ass in whatever fucking room he can't escape from."

"Yes sir."

"And tell them to search the entire goddamn base if they have to—for all of the fuckers. I don't believe that the girl escaped that easily, she might be hiding on the base somewhere. With help from my fucking son." Bull nods and opens the door to allow Erik to depart first and then follows closely behind him. When they reach the elevator, Erik jabs the sliver button heatedly and it lights up bright white.

"Sir?" Bull questions, keeping his vision directed at the closed metal doors.

"What?"

"Does this mean your son is now marked as a traitor?"

Erik blinks and the elevator dings as it reaches their floor. "Don't—rouge. He's rouge. A traitor . . . that's to be determined."

"Yes sir."

* * *

 **TWENTY MINUTES EARLIER**

 _The ball's in your court._

Jack honestly wants to throw the ball against the wall, then take off running in the other direction so he doesn't have to deal with the aftermath. A deeper part of him wants to take the ball and rip it clear in half and then scream at the top of his lungs. Since when did the universe get off on giving him impossible, shitty decisions like this to deal with?

Jack's breathing heavy while Kim's waiting with baited breath in front of him, and if he looks closely enough he can see her fingers shaking. Jerry's off to his left side and Taylor's next to him, her nails latched to his bicep, maybe to keep Jerry from doing something stupid? Jack doesn't know. His heart feels like it could beat out of his chest and _God_ there was never this much pressure when he had to kill somebody or listen to his father—he's never felt anything quite like this and a faraway part of him wonders, _is this what fucking love feels like?_

His mind is racing and Kim's staring at him and Jerry's mumbling something and it's all closing in and he's missed her, he's missed her, he's missed her, he's missed—

"That's . . . not the answer I was expecting."

Taylor smacks Jerry, and when he goes to object more she shushes him and links their hands together.

Jack had moved the two feet towards Kim and kissed her, his hands cupping her cheeks as her own wrapped around his shoulders and tangled in his hair. It's passionate, and warmth fills both of their stomachs as the kiss goes on, and by the time Jack pulls back, Kim is out of breath for a good reason. Their foreheads stay pressed together as his hands come to rest low on her hips, and Kim smiles, bringing him in for a shorter kiss.

"I've missed you," she whispers, and Jack's lips twitch upwards as his heart rages happily inside of his chest—finally, finally, _finally_.

"How are we going to do this?" He asks lowly, his voice staying steady, though he also feels like crying. The relief's washing over him in waves and his skin's burning from her touch and _God, get a hold of yourself Brewer_.

"I don't know," she replies honestly, "we're just going to . . . do."

It's so stupid that it makes him laugh, a hundred-and-ten percent real laugh bubbling out of him and causing his insides to hurt. It rumbles through his chest and causes Kim to grin, her cheeks flushed red and her own heat soaring.

Their reunion is cut short by the sound of Jack's phone, and he groans in frustration as he pulls away from Kim and tugs it from his pocket so he can answer it. "Vengeance," he grumbles into the speaker, reaching over and intertwining his empty hand with Kim's.

"You still haven't explained dude," Jerry points out from his corner and Taylor rolls her eyes and shuts him up with her own kiss, which Kim cheers on silently from her spot next to Jack.

"You're needed in Command, sir," Jail Breaker retorts from the other end of the line and Jack curses under his breath.

"I'll be there."

He hangs up the call and stuffs his phone back in his pocket before giving Kim another kiss and heading towards the stairs leading above ground. "Stay with her, please. I'll be back soon," he focuses on the other two who aren't necessarily paying attention.

He looks to Kim one last time and says the three words she never thought she'd hear again. "I love you."

She's stunned into silence for a moment but then gathers the courage to answer back, "I love you too," as Jack hides his smile by climbing up the staircase.

As the hatch opens and closes, Jerry and Taylor finish their own kiss, and Kim verbally cheers this time, enjoying the deep shade of crimson that appears on Jerry's face. Taylor laughs and the two girls gush, _literally gush_ —to Jerry's mortification, about it for a moment before Taylor says she has to go, something about an important mission.

Jerry gives her a quick hug before she disappears up the same stairs as Jack did a minute ago and Kim takes a seat on the uncovered cot as muteness engulfs them. Not knowing what else to do, she breaks it with a poorly hidden chuckle. "So how long?" Jerry moans as he takes his own seat on the bed, leaning back against the chipped wall next to Kim.

"Longer than Jack and you."

Kim beams and Jerry chortles, and he pulls her in for a friendly side-hug. "I hope we can get you out of here girl," he says affectionately, "I really like you as my friend and as Jack's girl." Kim exhales and squeezes him back before pulling away.

"I hope so too, Jer."

* * *

Taylor's 'important mission' wasn't really an important mission. She just wanted to sneak off to the kitchen so she could get the four of them some real food instead of having to eat the random goo inside one of those apocalyptic-looking boxes and cans in the bunker.

She makes it into the kitchen easily enough because of the late hour, but before she can even get to browsing through the food there's a black bag thrown on her head and zip-tie cutting into her wrists. The person secures the bag with a knot and then yanks her hands behind her back before fully zip-tying them as she struggles frantically the whole time.

But the person is strong, beefy strong—they're like a walking bull—and their hands stay firmly planted on her arms as they start to guide her out of the room.

Taylor moves her feet and walks, but apparently her pace isn't fast enough for her attacker, because they drag her when they don't think she's moving fast enough and any objection that escapes Taylor's mouth is unheeded. She can't escape but she can yell every vulgar word that's ever existied the entire way.

Which she does.

She walks for a while, and then they stop moving. Taylor hears a door open, and then the vice-like grip on her arms is gone and her cheek hits dry dirt that leaks through the bag. Her dog tags are torn from around her neck and she grapples for them with no success.

 _Fuck_.

She coughs when some of the dirt gets in her mouth, sputtering and spiting, and the door echoes when it slams shut after. She waits until she hears the footsteps fade away before muttering, "Motherfucker," and sitting herself up. She takes a breath and starts assessing her situation.

She's pretty sure she's in some type of abandoned cell, one that's never used or that's hidden away if the dirt tells her anything, and there's the faint smell of mold hitting her nostrils. Another curse comes out, and then another, and another. What has she gotten herself into?

It has to be Commander, she thinks to herself as the time drags on and her arms start to cramp up. Do they, whoever they is, really think the 'leave them there to rot so they get more freaked out' tactic would work on her? She's an army brat for crying out loud. The room's pitch black, and the bag makes it hard to breathe evenly, but that's nothing new; she was just on a mission in the jungle for two months that was full of swallowing mouthfuls of swamp water and horrible humidity that made it damn near impossible to breathe.

Her thoughts are cut short when she starts to hear footsteps and voices approaching.

She goes still so she can hear. The door creaks open and she doesn't even have time to say a snappy comment before she's hoisted to her feet by the same rough hands that had led her in here. The bag's ripped from her head and she blinks dazedly at the sudden light coming from the lights that have been turned on for Commander's benefit.

Commander.

Of fucking course, Taylor thinks, matching his sneer with one of her own.

He stares at her for a minute—and what Taylor wouldn't give to punch him right in the mouth—before he opens his mouth and speaks. "Taylor Kennedy." Taylor stays stagnant, unwavering. Commander leers. "Such a shame how young minds can be corrupted so easily," he lures, rocking back on the balls of his feet. "get cozy with my son, then with Watchtower and now with . . . "

He pauses and his right hand inches towards his pocket. "Venus, right? Or, Kim, as you would call her?"

"Fuck you." The brute behind her pulls her arms tighter and Taylor winces.

"Where is she, Taylor?" Commander inquires, "Where's Kim?"

"Fuck. You." She repeats, stronger this time. " _Fuck you_."

"Where is she?" He questions calmly, too calmly, "Where's Venus?"

She doesn't say anything this time, and he gives no explanation as he wrenches a knife from his pocket and holds it up to her neck. It's close enough that she's afraid to breathe in fear of cutting her own neck so she holds it.

"Where. Is. She?"

"You can't do anything to me. You put a hand on me, you do _anything_ to me—and they'll kill you. My parents will kill you. You'll lose all you've achieved in the military, and you'll be dead six feet under-fucking-ground."

Commander pauses, and something in his eyes lights up. Taylor stays collected on the outside but on the inside _shit-shit-shit_ is her mantra. The knife doesn't move. "She's underground?" He tests, but his lips are already pulling upwards and he knows. He fucking knows and it's all her fault. He grins then, a nasty curl of the mouth that makes her stomach churn.

"Thank you for all your help, sweetheart." He turns away but the man behind her keeps her in his arms and Taylor's confused for just a second but then she realizes what's happening as Commander turns back around and she goes to scream and do _something_ but it's too late.

With a simple flick of the wrist Commander slits her throat, and all is quiet after.

The man who was holding her lets her body fall to the ground and her limbs hit the dirt far too loudly. He recoils at the same time the door screeches, signaling it's being opened.

"Bull," Commander voices from the doorway, "let's go. Leave her. She's dead."

"Yes. Sir."

* * *

Jack is in the main Command room chatting away with some higher-ups when his father enters with Bull at his side, and the sadistic smile on his face is enough to cause Jack's nerves to seize up and his heart to thrash. It freaks him out enough that Jack actually believes he knows about Kim, but that would be impossible—there was no way in hell he could know.

"Commander," he says instead, as bravely as he can; the rest of the soldiers in the room stand at attention.

"At ease," Commander bellows and the room becomes busy again, and Jack feels like his gaze is staring straight through him.

"How are you out of the hospital so soon?"

"I convinced them I was good to go. Just a little lie, can't hurt anyone right?" He takes a step forward and the world slowly stops turning for Jack as it all crumbles down in front of him. "Stop with the games, son," Commander whispers threateningly, boldly. And without any warning he grabs him by the shirt and jerks Jack towards him, so he's close enough that his father can whisper in his ear.

"You will take me to her right now, or else she'll die a painful death in front of you. I'm sick of your fucking games. I know who she is and I know what you two shared and you need to _understand_ ," his voice raises on his own accord and Commander has to take a breath before lowering it again; "that life is no goddamn fairytale. Sometimes, the princess dies."

He pulls back and shoves Jack towards the door, pulling out the bloodstained knife from his pocket and holding it to his back. "Sometimes the knight in shining fucking armor does too." The tip of the knife enters Jack's back and he groans but otherwise stays quiet, his father at the helm of everything.

"So how is this story going to end Jack? Write the next _fucking_ page."


	11. Operation Hell's Gate

~Author's Note~

Hey guys! How's everyone doing? Apparently I've turned Missy dark—haha—so be prepared. Things get pretty intense, alright? Also **Tasha/Katie** if you could send either Missy or I a PM we wanted to talk with you about some follows and favorites. :)

Thank you guys _so_ much for the continuous support! Drop a review with your thoughts below if you enjoyed the chapter (man I just did this with another story 'enjoy' is totally not the right word gosh that makes me sound horrible . . . ) if you'd like to share your thoughts, please feel free to do so!

* * *

Chapter Ten—Operation Hell's Gate  
2201 Hours (10:01 pm, EST)  
 _Brewer, Jack_

* * *

Panic and fear. The two things he learned early on in life to never show your opponent or the world were right at the surface. His father had caught up to him and he knew they just reached the end of the road. He doesn't want to believe it, that his carelessness caused all this, but he can't help but feel defeated. He has a knife to his back and is being forced to show his father where Kim is.

His Kim.

His Kim that he just got back.

He always knew his father was corrupt and malicious. He's seen it first hand and all the horrible things he's capable of. He just never thought that his own father would stoop this low. To put his only son—his only child—in this kind of situation.

He knows he's screwed. But if he's learned anything in the past few years, it's that nothing is certain until you're the last one standing.

The silence is heavy between the two until they reach the outside. Commander takes a long, deep breath, enjoying the fresh air, an evil smirk appearing on his lips as he finally focuses on his son.

"Jackson, I hate to say it but I'm disappointed in you. You're my son, my own flesh and blood and you pull something idiotic like this? You know you can never beat me. I'm Commander. I'm the damn leader. I'm the boss!" He speaks with such simple authority it would make anyone feel small and uneasy.

"You may be all those things, but you're not a good father. Never were. And I may be your flesh and blood, but the title of son doesn't fit me. Ever since I could remember, I was your successor, one of your army men you could train to be just like you. We never had a simple life because of you. Never cared enough about each other to live normally because of your need for control. Mom was always your biggest supporter, catering to your every need, but you never gave back to her what she truly deserved. And me, you pushed me to be the best at everything and though at times it helped pave the way for me to get a leg up on others, I lost a part of myself. I lost who I was because I was so damn busy trying to please you. We were never a family because of you," Jack reveals without reservations as the words, feelings and emotions just seem to pour out.

"You ungrateful piece of shit," Commander hisses in anger and Jack is taken by surprise when he's slapped hard across the face. "You will never speak about your mother ever again. And you will certainly never take that tone again when speaking to me. I own you."

And before Jack can respond, there's a hard punch to his stomach that sends him down to his knees as he tries to catch his breath.

"You're a tormented fucker," Jack wheezes out, glaring up at his father with narrowed eyes.

Commander stares right back, unaffected by his son's 'harsh' words, but he's also so fed up and irritated with all the stupid choices his son has made that he's going to put a stop to it right now. He bends down to his son's level, the two locking eyes for a second before he leans close to whisper in Jack's ear, "And you're a pathetic bastard of a son," as he slyly reaches over to yank off his dog tags.

"What the—?" Jack growls before getting punched in the face by a strong arm.

Dazed and off-balanced, murmuring could be heard off to the side, but before he could focus in on that, Jack is being roughly lifted off the ground and dragged back inside. Trying to find the strength to fight back seemed almost impossible as his vision is still blurry and the death grip on his shirt is practically choking him, but he wasn't giving up. Wasn't going to let his power-hungry, evil, neurotic father control him.

He waits a few seconds before sending a blow to the person's ribs as they cough out a breath and drop him. Taking this as the upper-hand, Jack sends a few quick hits to the person's face before the guy suddenly stops his hand mid-swing and swiftly twists it behind his back.

"Fuck!" Jack swears under his breath as he is now walking in front of the person with his hands behind his back.

Realizing that that probably wasn't the smartest move to do, he's still pleased he got a few good hits in as it proves to his father that he's not done yet. Proving he still has a few moves left under his sleeve.

The two finally make it to the end of the hallway on the lower level and once Jack is roughly pushed inside, the guy, now seen clearly as The Beast—as he's tall and built like the Hulk—forces him into the cold metal chair in the dark corner and ties his arms behind his back and his ankles to the leg of the chair.

"Goodbye, Vengeance," The Beast taunts before walking away and slamming the door shut, leaving Jack to think of a last minute plan. And quick.

* * *

With two people out of the way, Commander feels rather joyful about the current situation. He's taking them out one by one as they are no match for his superiority. They are all weak, inadequate, so finishing them up will be a piece a cake.

Bull finds the latch leading to the underground bunker and even though he wishes he could ambush the bitch, he knows she has nowhere else to run to. Hastily making his way down the steps and inhaling the stale odor, he hears faint whispers and raises an eyebrow in confusion. Motioning for Bull to take charge, the trained combat instructor walks further into the bunker and instantly screams and curses are heard and it's like music to his ears.

"Give it up, Crawford. You got away once by a fluke and quick thinking. This time, you have no moves. You're mine now and it's time to get down to business. This is the end for you so—Watchtower? Why am I not surprised to see you down here too," Commander growls in annoyance. Of course his son's best friend and closest confidant would be down here to protect the stupid girl.

Morons.

And this is where his son made his mistake. True relationships like this makes a person vulnerable and for him, bringing the girl back into play after all these years got him to where he wanted to be and that's just plain lucky.

Another point for Commander.

"Sir." Jerry responds without emotion as he tries to move closer to Kim to protect her anyway he can.

"It's not going to work Watchtower, so just give up," Commander calls out, seeing the young gentleman being the protector. "If you guys thought you could trick me into thinking the girl was gone, then you're more stupid than I thought. Alliances are what kills the good guys."

"Think what you to want Commander but we're not done yet. Jack is going to kill you if you do anything to us," Jerry exclaims, pointing out the obvious as everyone knows the two are as close as family.

"Maybe," Commander brushes it off, "but I wouldn't be too sure about that because once again I have the upper-hand," as he holds up the two dog tags.

The two are silent for a few seconds before Kim barks out, "What the fuck did you do!" as she almost lunges at Commander before getting stopped by Bull and Jerry.

"You'll see soon enough, you spoiled bitch. Bull, take and deal with Watchtower," Commander orders as he strides over to grab Kim.

She doesn't like what's happening and decides to do the only thing she can. She fights back. Once Commander is close enough, she sends a strong punch to his jaw, sending him to the ground and even though she should be happy about it, she knows she's enraged him even more.

"I'm so fucking tired of you," Commander exhales in dark fury as he quickly reaches for Kim and in one swift move pulls her arm out in a awkward position and dislocates it.

Jerry yells out in outrage as Kim briefly moans in discomfort and within seconds everyone exiting in the bunker with Commander tightly gripping Kim's injured arm and Bull having a gun to Jerry's back. The four urgently walk back to base and are immediately separated as Jerry knows they are not only losing leverage, but they're most likely losing each other. And in an panicked instant he realizes Taylor hasn't come back. He prays that she's safe, but he also suddenly gets this weird feeling in his gut that something isn't right.

He needs to get to her and he needs to get there fast.

He allows Bull to walk him in the opposite direction of the main base, to a more secluded section that is dirtier, older and smells worse than the bunker. With no one in sight and complete silence around them, Bull loosens his hold for second and Jerry takes this opportunity to get free. Using all his strength, he sends a combination of hits and punches to Bull's face and jaw to get him off balance and then he goes for the cheap shot and kicks him right in the groin, ending the fight in a snap.

Without a plan or thinking logically, Jerry takes off down the closest hallway and starts opening every cell door. Coming up empty handed with those ten, he continues down another hallway knowing he's running out of time before Bull gets up and will most definitely kill him. He rushes to the closest door before unexpectedly spotting drag marks leading towards a cell at the end of the row. Going purely on instincts, he sprints to the door only to find it locked. Yelling every expletive word known to man in frustration, he feels his world crumbling down around him.

This whole thing is fucked up in more ways than you could ever imagine possible and when he hears heavy footsteps coming his way, he's done. He can't fight anymore. These people—Commander, Bull, Jail Breaker—have no heart. Have no soul. They take and take and take and ruin people's lives. But he's grateful for being here. Being here with Jack who is not only a friend, his best friend, but he's also a brother. They've been through a lot and even though this is the end of the road for them, he's so proud of what they've done. And he's very glad Jack is nothing like his father. He only wishes he can be as strong as that.

In the blink of an eye, he feels a tightness around his neck, a pain in his knee and hears Bull darkly whisper, "You can't defeat me, you can't beat commander and now you can die alongside that bitch of a girlfriend."

He's losing air and then feels quick, sharp pains as Bull strongly sends a few hits to his side and stomach, weakening him more as he falls limply to the ground and Bull hurriedly unlocks the cell. The old rusty door squeaks open and Bull harshly grabs Jerry by the arm and literally throws him inside as he lands feet away from Taylor. Relief fills him for a second before he notices the blood on the ground, on her hands, and most disheartening—on her neck.

"What did you do to her?" Jerry snares lividly, but also staying calm and trying not feel sick over the sight of the dried blood.

"Exactly what it looks like. She was a problem so we got rid of her," Bull answers simply.

"You're a bunch of monsters," Jerry shouts. "Grown men torturing people half their age. Do you get pleasure from it? Do you feel inferior? And do you realize that you're doing all of Commander's dirty work? That if this all goes to shit, that you'll be the one charged with murder while Commander's clean. Take a look around. We're only on our twenties! Do you think we wanted to live like this? Do you think we enjoy killing people? This, this place has changed everyone. And definitely not for the better."

"Shut up! Shut your fucking mouth!" Bull warns, his temper rising. "You don't know anything."

Jerry ignores Bull and on focuses on Taylor. He reaches out to run his knuckes gently down her cheek as he doesn't want to believe what's right in front of him.

"Are you crying?" Bull continues to taunt.

"No, I'm not crying. But unlike you, I have feelings. I loved her. She was the most beautiful girl I've ever known. She was so strong and I wish I could have told her," Jerry sighs, staring lovingly down at the girl who had captured his heart in such a short amount of time.

"That's pathetic," Bull chuckles as he watches Jerry hold Taylor in his arms.

"No, it's called love. Something you obviously have never had in your life. Those who never love, never understand the full extent of—holy shit," Jerry states suddenly as he stops talking.

"What?" Bull mumbles grumpily, not in the mood for any more of this 'love' nonsense.

"She's still alive," Jerry cries out in happiness.

"No, that can't be. Commander slit her throat," Bull defends as he rushes inside towards them.

"I see that, but it wasn't deep enough to kill her. I feel a faint pulse," Jerry explains, a new light coming back into him.

"Seriously?" Bull questions, his tone becoming softer.

"Yeah," Jerry nods as he watches Bull bend on the other side of Taylor and slowly place his pointer and middle fingers on her neck.

He does indeed feel a slow, weak beating. "Well, damn," he mutters, not knowing what to think.

"We need to get her to the hospital. Like right now. Are you going to help me and be the good guy for once in your life or are you going to continue to let Commander control you and your life and let this innocent person die?" Jerry inquires, carefully lifting Taylor into his arms and standing up.

"Follow me. I'll get us out of here safely," Bull agrees as watching Jerry and Taylor did something to him.

Made him see something different.

* * *

With luck slowly turning in Jerry's favor, Kim wasn't so lucky.

Commander was rough handling her and with every move, every step, she knew he was plotting. Knew that whatever he had in store for her wasn't going to be pretty. And Commander, he couldn't stop smiling. He felt like he was walking on air. He was in control of everything and it was all about to end. Not just for the girl, but for his son as well. It's a shame his son is defiant and it's pity it's to come to this but he'll enjoy every second of it.

They walk down three flights of stairs and finally Kim is relieved she can finally sit down when they enter the large room with lots of equipment. She is normally a strong person, but she knew the kind of man Commander was and so, she took a deep breath and was ready for whatever he gave her. And if there is something that fits her, it's that she's a fighter and will continue to fight until she couldn't any longer. Commander pushes her into a big chair and straps thick belts around her chest, stomach, thighs and ankles and after seeing all this, Kim knows escaping is definitely out of the picture.

 _Well, shit_ , she thinks to herself as she continues to look around the room, trying to spot anything that could help her.

"If you're done trying to figure out this room, I'd like to get started," Commander's deep, calm voice breaks her thoughts.

"Fine," Kim replies enthusiastically.

"Great," Commander nods. "This process will be for the easy if you cooperate. If not, well, I'll have to torture you until you give me what I want or you die. It's up to you. Understood?"

"Loud and clear," Kim retorts, staring him in the eyes to prove she's not scared of him.

"All right then. Can you tell me about your father?" Commander starts off easy as he leans against a big machine.

"He was a hard worker but a hard ass. I guess the two of you have that in common," Kim answers straightforwardly.

"Anything else?" Commander pushes and clenches his jaw as they haven't even started and she's already irritating him.

"Yeah. He supported us the best way he could. And something important I guess I should tell you is that he was a better father than you. He cared enough about me to protect me. He loved me enough to push me away from things he invested in," Kim shares and Commander didn't mean to but he lost it.

"You little bitch. You think you're so clever, but your smart ass remarks are what's going to kill you," Commander hisses as he backhands her across the face.

Kim tastes blood on her lips, but accepts the challenge. "Wow, if you get angry over something small like that, this is going to be an easy interrogation, huh?" she jokes as Commander pulls out a gun and presses it into her forehead.

"But push me," he advises before a smirk appears on his lips, "you may not care if you die, but I'm sure he will."

Kim raises an eyebrow at the comment as she watches Commander walk over to the wall, press a button and sees the wall off to her left open up. It's pretty amazing but then the lights flicker in one by one and her heart drops when she notices Jack sitting there all tied up too. Their eyes immediately lock with one another and Jack mouths _I'm sorry_ before Commander continues on.

"Now, you may not care if you die, but I'm sure you wouldn't want your ex-boyfriend to witness it, right?"

"Jack would understand," Kim mumbles, hating that they're in this position.

"Really?" Commander questions, rubbing his chin. "Jack?"

"We're soldiers. We do what we need to do," Jack responds firmly, but silently prays that Kim won't die.

"Okay. This is going to be fun," Commander grins as he refocuses on Kim and swings his gun around on his finger. "Do you know where your father is?"

"Nope. Haven't seen him since I left for college," Kim recites without missing a beat.

"How did you get involved in whatever organization you're with?" Commander wonders curiously.

"Through some friends. I had the skills they needed and I needed a change of pace," Kim utters casually, shrugging her shoulders.

"Are you aware that your father is a traitor?" Commander proclaims with a hint of anger.

"My father is not a traitor," Kim defends, her anger slowly rising.

"Well how do you know that? You just said your father never let you close enough to whatever he was working on. How do you know he's not working with the other side?" Commander repeats her words back to her.

"Because I know my father. We may not have always gotten along, but I know he's a good man," Kim clarifies, watching the gun closely.

"Now we're just going around in circles and I hate it. Tell me the fucking truth!" Commander yells with venom in his words.

"I am!" Kim yells back, matching his mood.

"No, I don't think you are," Commander grunts, studying her face.

He places his gun back in the holder on his waist and then go to the corner to pick up a small metal rod. Next he pulls a lighter out from his jeans pocket and lets the flame heat the metal for a few minutes as Jack and Kim watch in terror as they know what's going to happen. He walks back over to Kim, shakes his head disapprovingly at her and then places the hot metal against her skin on her upper arm. She screams in pain the few seconds the rod is on her and then spits in Commander's face as she seethes, "Cheap shot."

"Maybe. But it's my rules. The more you lie, the more pain I inflict. So let me ask you again, what do you know?" Commander asks, taking a step back and heating the metal.

"Nothing!" Kim snaps as the heated rod touches her arm again.

"I can do this all day," Commander smiles as he pulls out his gun again. "What do you know?"

"I know that you're a control freak who thrives on power," Kim mentions bluntly as she's suddenly shot in the leg.

"Goddamn! Kim!" Jack yells out in anger and fear.

"Shut up you worthless piece of shit," Commander glares at his son.

"I wouldn't push your luck, Crawford. I know your father worked with the enemy and gave them vital information. I want to know who. And I know you know something. So, the sooner you tell me, the sooner this all stops," Commander offers.

"You think you're all high and mighty because you have weapons and a team, but you're a coward who can't fight like a man. And here's another thing, I'm loyal to my family. I'm loyal to those who deserve it. So kill me. Apparently that's the only thing you're good at," Kim announces, hitting a nerve as Commander places his gun away in the holder and then walks over to the machine.

"As you wish," he agrees as he flips a switch and grabs thin prongs, tapping them together as Kim sees the sparks.

"Fuck," she draws out, at times hating her big mouth. But hey, that's just who she is.

She watches Commander stand in front of her before he places the prongs on her stomach and as much as she wants to be strong, she can't because the shock is more than painful. It's deadly. It only lasts a few seconds like everything else, but with her reaction, she knows he'll stick with this for a while.

"Good. Now that I've gotten your attention, tell me who your father was working with!" Commander tries again.

Kim is catching her breath and bellows, "Are you deaf? For the fucking last time, I don't know!"

Commander grinds his teeth, not pleased with the answer as he shocks her again. He repeats the questions, probably for the fiftieth time since they started this and still, no answer.

So, she gets the same torture time and time again.

* * *

Over in the corner on the other side of the room, Jack is oozing emotions he hasn't felt in years. They are all in this predicament because everyone has their own agenda. But it stops now. The torture, pain and need for control. All of it.

His father was so busy making him weak, he never told his goons to check him. So, at least they have this working for them. In Jack's back pocket, he always carries his small pocket knife. Which he's been trying and successfully gets out without too much movement and causing a scene as he starts working on cutting the thick rope that's cutting off circulation in his wrists. It seems to take forever before he finally gets its off and as he reaches down for his ankles, he sees his father so focused on Kim and the pain he's causing her that he gets freed within seconds and with a renewed amount of energy. Taking a few minutes to gain his balance and thoughts, he carefully, but quickly, moves to into the next room with his father and Kim and waits for his perfect opportunity to take down his father.

Kim's screaming is breaking his heart and he notices she's getting weaker and weaker, so when his father finishes another round of shocks to Kim's abused body, he steps up behind him and gives a quick, hard stab to his father's right side.

Commander shouts in pain and drops the prongs as he whips around so that he's face to face with his son, the two sharing similar expressions. Dark, narrowed, evil eyes and firm, locked jaws.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Commander questions with a roar.

"What I should have done a long time ago. Payback's a bitch," Jack reminds him as he punches Commander hard in the face, sending him to the ground on his hands and knees.

At this moment, Jack feels a certain power and hears Kim begging him to stop. Telling him he's not like his father. But he can't stop himself and for once in his life, he's ahead of him.

He stabs his father in the back, forcing the old man to fall flat on his face.

As the blood rolls from Commander's back, Kim yells as Jack moves forwards and seals his fate.


End file.
